Puxico R-8 School will have a NO TAX INCREASE bond issue on the April 2 Ballot.
Feedback from teachers, staff members, and the community, shows there is interest in replacing Puxico Elementary School with a new building. To achieve this goal, it will take time, community input, community support, additional funding, and extensive planning.
With rising labor and material costs, it is not possible for the District to achieve this goal by passing a debt service bond issue for construction, without raising taxes. Due to bonding capacity, the revenues generated from a debt service bond would also fall short of meeting the expenses for project completion. Currently, the district receives funding locally in the operating fund with revenues that are equal to the state minimum tax levy of $2.75. The additional local tax revenues, that were voter approved and provided by the school community, have been applied to a debt service levy for the new high school (completed in 2008) and other campus improvements. With conservative management of those funds, we are nearing the obligation for repayment on all debt service. This situation allows the District and the School Community an opportunity to consider a ballot option to work toward meeting the goal of replacing Puxico Elementary.
The Puxico R-8 School Board of Education is providing the community an option to move our current debt service levy, that will no longer be required, to the operating budget in order to set aside funds to contribute to an elementary building project and make necessary district improvements in the near future. As the operating levy increases, the debt service levy decreases by the same amount.
The biggest takeaway is that the total overall tax levy will not change.
The ballot language for the April 2, 2024 election is below.