Even though state funding has not yet been set for next year, the Bettendorf school board has finished working on the budget, and will submit it to the state by the deadline next week. Monday night, the board held a public hearing then gave its final approval.
Director of Finance, Maxine McEnany, says the Iowa legislature is deadlocked over whether to raise state aid by 1 1/4 per cent or 4 per cent, so to play it safe, she built the smaller increase into the new budget. But the probable new money will be far less than pay raises previously agreed to for employees.
The current tax rate for residents of the Bettendorf School District is $14.02 per $1,000 of property value. Her goal is to keep it at that level, but that will depend on whatever final decision is made by the legislature and governor.
Each year, Iowa school districts are required to submit their proposed budgets to the state by April 15th, with the new fiscal year starting on July first.