The Canton PUBLIC School District (CPSD) will not be raising taxes for the upcoming school year – the outcome some Lake Caroline residents were hoping for.
“There will not be a millage increase or further comment,” CPSD Public Relations Director Beverly Luckett said.
The school district was proposing to increase taxes within the school district, which includes the Lake Caroline neighborhood with many residents opposing. CPSD currently operates with a projected total budget revenue of $64,026,694.53 and 24 percent of that amount is obtained through ad valorem taxes. The proposed budget increase that would have taken place this upcoming fiscal year had a projected revenue of $57,715,575.27, which 30 percent or $17,463,370.78 was proposed to be financed through a total ad valorem tax levy.
If the proposed increase would have been passed for the 2023-2024 fiscal year, it may have resulted in an increase of the tax millage rate, which is paid on homes, automobile tags, business fixtures and equipment and rental real property.
When this was announced, a post was made on the Lake Caroline Facebook page encouraging residents to attend the school’s June 15th public board meeting to speak against the increase of taxes. The post stated no Lake Caroline children attended the schools yet they had their taxes raised each year to support the school system.
“Most of Lake Caroline is in the Canton School District, so they pay Canton School District taxes,” Madison County Supervisor Trey Baxter said. “They can send their kids to private school, but if they go to public school, they go to Canton.”
Resident Justin Smith has no problem paying taxes to a school district they are a part of, regardless if they utilize it, but rather has an issue paying an increase he doesn’t know what it will be going towards. “I have no problem paying the increase if it comes down to it and you can reasonably outline why you need to raise taxes in our area and where that money is allocated to,” Smith said. “But just to say, ‘Hey, we’re gonna raise taxes.’ – that’s unheard of, especially for people that aren’t using your service.”
