Valley View to Revisit Tax Increase, Update Board Members on State IOU

The Valley View school board is expected to make good on a promise it made in December to not burden area taxpayers more than it has to.

The board, according to district documents, is set to pass a resolution that would allow the district to adjust its final 2010 tax levy allocation so that taxpayers pay no more than they did last year. The board will vote on a resolution that will seek a zero percent tax increase tonight at its regularly scheduled board meeting.

The board, in December, before it had to request its final levy in March.

By state law, school districts must submit a tax levy to the county clerk by the last Tuesday in December. That 6.3 percent request would have represented an $8 million increase from last year’s extension.

The board’s ability to drop the rate down to zero is due largely to a. According to House Bill 5289, which passed both the state House and Senate but still awaits signature from Gov. Pat Quinn, would expand the timeframe for paying back debt from 20 years to 25 years.

The bill went hand in hand with the district’s attempt to restructure its long-term debt in an attempt to avoid burdening taxpayers with more strife during economic times.

“I can tell you that 100 percent, without a consultant of this nature, we would for all intents and purposes be spinning our wheels down in the legislative body,” said Gary Grizaffi, the district’s assistant superintendent for administrative services.

The district will not receive its final EAV and new property values until late March, which is also the time the district must come up with its final levy request.

But taxpayers can rest assured that they won’t see a rate increase on their bills this year—at least that’s what board members say.

"We will make this happen. If we don't, we'll have to stand in front of the public and say we are raising taxes when we just said we wouldn't. But I have seen the proposals, and we are going to be able to do it,” said board member Rick Gougis in December.

State IOU

Board members are also expected to hear from Grizaffi on the amount of money owed to the district by the state.

According to a district’s treasurer’s report, the state owes Valley View $8.29 million, most of which is tied to Title I funds.

The $8.29 million figure is , but down from the .

Advanced Calculus Course

When we last saw the Valley View board in action, it that would have offered advanced calculus at  after questions arose regarding whether the program would have contributed to a lack of parity between Bolingbrook and Romeoville students.

That resolution, however, is back on the table and now includes language that offers the program in .

The new class will cater to a select group of students who participated in a pilot mathematics program at , which began four years ago. Those students, because of their advanced math skills, need another upper level math class during their senior year of high school because they would be two years ahead in their mathematics instruction.

The district will offer open enrollment for all students who are eligible for a senior level math course.

For more information and a full recap of the district’s board meeting tonight, check back with Patch.