Revenue for Teton County schools is increasing, which on its face sounds positive.
However, the way Wyomingâs foundation block grant program works, most of that increased revenue ends up leaving the county. The stateâs educational funding model sets the amount each county receives through a complicated calculation based on enrollment numbers, staffing and cost of living, among other things, and it sets the rate of the districtsâ property tax mill levy.
Counties that canât raise the amount promised through the program are called âentitlementâ districts and receive the difference from the state. Those that raise more are ârecaptureâ districts, and the difference between their funding amount and revenue is distributed to the entitlement districts.
As the school year ends and the district looks to the future, the biggest pressure might not come from decisions about education. Instead, housing issues loom over one of Teton
After spirited discussion, the school board decided to wait to make a decision on increasing taxes to pay for recreational facilities and activities.
The Teton County School District No. 1 Board of Trustees oversees the taxation power of the Teton County Recreation District. At the school boardâs monthly meeting Wednesday, it was considering a proposal to raise the Rec Districtâs tax to 1 mill, the maximum allowed.
The rec district approved the increase at its most recent meeting, though it needs the school boardâs go-ahead. Taxing property owners at the highest allowed level was meant to offset some of the funding cuts the Wyoming Legislature was considering.
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How Wyoming should balance the need to address revenue declines with the constitutional obligation to educate the state’s citizens will be the focus of a discussion Thursday night.
A panel of experts will convene starting at 5 p.m. for a roundtable talk on “The Real Cost of Defunding Education in Wyoming.” The event will be via Zoom and is open free to the public.
The roundtable is presented by the Equality State Policy Center.
In accordance with the state constitution, Wyoming’s Supreme Court ruled in 1995 that Wyoming must provide an adequate and equitable education to every student, ruling that all other financial considerations of the state must yield “until education is funded.”