The March 1 Mid-Prairie bond issue is asking voters permission to sell $26.3 million of general obligation bonds to pay for $37.6 million worth of construction as outlined in the last column. The difference will come from funds the district receives through sales tax and fundraising.  Professionals from Shive-Hattery, Carl A. Nelson & Co., and Piper Sandler determined the total estimated cost.

A primary question asked by potential voters is how will the bond issue affect their property taxes if it passes.  Property taxes for bond issues are calculated on net “taxable” value – not “assessed” or “market” value.  The appropriate rollback and homestead credit need to be applied before calculating the total annual tax.

Section 441.21 of the Code of Iowa provides for the reduction of property tax valuations according to assessment limitations (rollback) to cushion the impact of inflation. The Iowa Department of Revenue annually computes rollback percentages, and county auditors multiply the assessed valuations by them to determine taxable valuations.

The current property tax levy for the bond issue Mid-Prairie voters passed in 2014 is $2.70 per $1,000 of taxable value.  The proposed new rate is $3.30 per $1,000 of taxable value – an increase of $0.60.  This is the same increase that was asked of the voters for the 2014 bond issue that asked permission to sell $10.6 million in general obligation bonds.

For a homeowner with a house assessed at $100,000, the annual increase in total property taxes, after the rollback to 54.1% and the homestead credit are applied, is $29.61 a year – or $2.47 a month.

For a commercial property owner with a building assessed at $100,000, the annual increase in total property taxes, after a rollback to 90% is applied, is $54.00 a year – or $4.50 a month.

Agricultural ground is taxed on its “productivity,” not “market” value.  According to the Washington County Assessor, the average CSR productivity value of Washington County farm ground in the Mid-Prairie School District is 65.02. If you multiply this by the assessor’s unit price of $17.1319, the average productivity value in dollars in Mid-Prairie is $1,114.00 per acre.  Therefore, the annual increase in total property taxes to a Washington County average acre in Mid-Prairie, after a rollback to 89.0% is applied, is $0.59 per acre a year.

Another issue of concern to voters is how the district’s property tax rate compares to other school districts in the area.  Mid-Prairie’s current tax rate this year is $13.23.  If the bond issue passes, the tax rate for next year is estimated to be $13.83.  Below are the current (FY2022) tax rates for area school districts:

• Mt. Vernon: $17.89*

• Clear Creek-Amana: $17.06*

• Solon: $16.28*

• Washington: $16.13*

• West Branch: $15.21*

• Iowa City: $14.85*

• Williamsburg: $14.41*

• West Liberty: $14.23*

• Mid-Prairie (Estimated if Bond Issue Passes): $13.83

• Mid-Prairie (Current): $13.23

• Highland: $13.01

• Lone Tree: $12.82

• Keota: $12.20*

• English Valley: $11.62

(* Denotes districts having a dedicated auditorium space.)

More information about the bond referendum can be found on the webpage 2022mpbond.org.  If you have questions or would like to arrange a presentation to your group, simply call my cell phone at 319-936-8601 or send me an email at mschneider@mphawks.org.

For more information, check out the Mid-Prairie bond referendum website:

2022MPBond.org