Schools fuel tax increases

Amy Rinard:

Driven by rising school taxes, overall property tax collections in southeastern Wisconsin rose 4.6% this year, compared with a 2.4% increase the year before, a new Public Policy Forum study shows.

Most taxpayers were insulated from having to pay more because rising property values allowed government to spread the burden across an expanded tax base, the study says, but a local official warns that the trend in overall tax collections is bound to eventually push up tax bills as property values cool down.

"There's no question in my mind that the inflationary factor is not going to be that high," said Norm Cummings, director of administration for Waukesha County. "We'll start to see it slow down; it's not going to be like the '90s."

That will cause homeowners to watch local property tax levy increases more closely than they have in many years, Cummings predicted.

The slowdown in assessment increases (decreases?) will change the "we're keeping the mill rate flat" sales pitch.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at July 9, 2007 12:00 AM
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