Wausau School Board Approves Tax Levy

Thursday, September 28th, 2023 -- 8:00 AM

(WSAU) The Wausau School Board voted to adopt next year’s tax levy during Monday’s annual meeting.

According to WSAU, Assistant Superintendent of Operations Josh Viegut says homeowners should expect consistency with this year’s bill compared to last, as the overall levy rate went from $9.36 to $8.83.

“The levy is going up by 3% but that is pegged as close as possible to net new construction in the district. So the individual homeowner rate should stay pretty much the same.” He says it’s important to remember that there are two variables in the equation.

So if the rate goes down but your property value goes up significantly, you could see an increase on your 2024 bill. But if your valuation stayed consistent, then a decline could be in order.

“If you were at $400,000 last year and are [still] at $400,000 this year, then you would see a decline because the mill rate goes down,” said Viegut. Viegut is overseeing his first budget for the school district, taking over for Bob Tess who retired this summer.

As for the budget itself, that will be approved at the October meeting. Viegut says the biggest accomplishment of the proposed spending plan is a significant boost in employee salaries across the board.

“It’s the largest salary increase for certified staff in the last five years. We were also able to give a 5% across the board for [other] increases, so that was pretty healthy. That’s good for people, especially during this time of high inflation."

"The district is in a great place right now and the most important thing is that we are serving the kids as well as we can; giving them the best education possible,” he added.

Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.