The Pattonville Board of Education on Sept. 27 voted to approve the district tax rate for the 2022-2023 school year. School boards in St. Louis County set tax rates each year for four classes of property within school district boundaries: residential, commercial, personal and agricultural. The rates for all four property classes, as approved by the board, are: residential: $4.2858; agricultural: $5.3756; commercial: $5.5186; and personal property: $5.3845.

As assessed value of each class of property changes, the district is limited to the lesser of three factors by Missouri law, to the amount of revenue it can receive. Those factors and their rates in Pattonville for 2022 are: 

• increase in assessed valuation, at 1.062% for Pattonville;
• the increase in Consumer Price Index (CPI), at 7% for Pattonville; or 
• no more than 5% if the other rates are higher.

As the lowest rate, assessed valuation was used to set district tax rates. The assessed value of residential property in Pattonville decreased by .03%, while the value of commercial and personal property increased to 2.37% and 16.95%, respectively. The overall assessed valuation increase for all property in the district, excluding new construction, was 1.062%, resulting in approximately $795,000 additional operating revenue for the 2022-2023 school year.

The increase in the commercial rate will help Pattonville recoup protested assessment values from previous years. The assessed value of commercial property decreased by approximately $30 million between September 2021 and December 2021 due to a significant number of protested tax parcels settled in favor of the commercial taxpayer. This increased rate will provide the district with approximately $963,000 additional funds. 

Additionally, the increase in personal property rates stem from increased assessed value on Jan. 1, 2022, due to demand for used vehicles leading to proposed higher personal property tax rates.

Also important to note is the fact that Pattonville’s residential rate will be lower than the rates for agricultural, commercial and personal property, as promised to voters when they approved the Proposition P tax rate increase in 2013. At the time of the election, the district promised to limit the residential tax rate increase for as many years as possible. Proposition P allowed the district to levy up to 99 cents, but the district has kept its commitment during the past nine years to maintain a lower residential tax rate. 

Pattonville continues to take a voluntary rollback to its debt service tax rate in order to lessen the tax burden on homeowners. The district’s debt service tax rate, which is part of the district’s overall tax levy, remains unchanged at 49 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, as promised to voters when they approved zero tax-rate-change bond issues in 2022, 2017, 2010 and 2006. Under the state’s formula for calculating tax rates and the district’s taxing capacity, the district could have levied 4 cents more in its debt service tax rate. The total tax rate, including debt service, approved for residential properties is $4.2858 per $100 of assessed valuation. The overall impact of voluntary rollbacks on a $200,000 home in the district equates to a 4.9% reduction in homeowner tax bills (see chart below). 

Approximately 86% of Pattonville’s revenue comes from local sources, which include taxes paid on property in the district. These taxes are based on the assessed value of the property, as determined by the St. Louis County assessor’s office. Pattonville will continue to monitor district revenues and expenditures to ensure the district remains fiscally responsible.