The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction late last week released an estimate of the general school aids each public school district will receive for the 2022-23 school year. The estimate is based on budgeted dollars submitted by school districts. This estimate allows school districts to develop the 2022-23 school year budget. The DPI will certify general school aid amounts based on audited data in October 2022.
The three Burnett County school districts will have different funding amounts from the past and vary widely:
Grantsburg general aids will go to $6,297,879 for the 2022-2023 July 1 fiscal year, up from the 2021-2022 Oct. 15 amount of $4,771,809, a change of $1,526,070, amounting to a 31.98% increase.
Siren will also see an increase, as state general aids go up to $1,388,413 for the 2022-2023 July 1 year, up from $874,123, which is a change of $514,290. That amounts to an increase of 58.83%.
Webster will go the other way, and is among the few districts in the state with a slight reduction, with their 2022-2023 July 1 general aids dropping slightly to $24,225, down from the 2021-2022 Oct. 15 amount of $28,500, or a reduction of $4,275, amounting to 15.00%.
According to the DPI, estimated general school aids for 2022-23 total $5.2 billion, representing an increase of 3.7 percent from last year. Districts were not provided with an allowable increase to their revenue limits, meaning any new aid they receive is required to offset property taxes. Of the state’s 421 school districts, 68.9% (290 districts) are estimated to receive more general aids than in 2021-22, while 29.9% of districts (126) are estimated to receive less; five districts are estimated to have no change in aid between the 2021-22 and 2022-23 fiscal years.
Notably, 56 districts are estimated to receive the maximum 15% decrease under the state’s hold harmless aid provision, 12 fewer than last year. Webster is among them. A district’s general aids can increase or decrease due to changes in the general equalization aid formula — property valuation, enrollment, and shared costs — as well as a difference in funds available from the state.
While school districts received a significant investment from various federal stimulus efforts, these federal funds have a spending deadline and will not renew after 2024. Facing the absence of a state commitment of new spending through revenue limit growth, districts looking to invest their federal dollars in programming for learners will continue to struggle with how to plan for a ‘fiscal cliff scenario’ in the 2024-25 school year.
General school aids are the largest form of state support for Wisconsin public schools, offsetting local property taxes under state-imposed revenue limits. The estimate is based on the 2021-22 budget and pupil count data. On October 15, 2022, DPI will certify amounts for 2022-23 general school aids based on audited data. - With information from the Wisconsin DPI
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