This year Maricopa County property taxpayers are fortunate because they have received, almost simultaneously, two important documents. They are information pamphlets for proposed bond issues and property tax statements.
We will be discussing these two documents, plus a third one, to assist taxpayers with their decision to vote YES or NO at the ballot box.
It should be noted that the numbers quoted here are applicable only to taxpayers who reside in Phoenix and are served by the Paradise Valley Unified School District (PVUSD). Your numbers may vary, but the principles involved are universally applicable.
When considering any major investment, which this bond issue is, prudent people often ask three questions:
- What is the benefit of the increased spending?
- How much is already being spent?
- How well is the money already paid being used?
To assist taxpayers with their decision, we will be looking for answers to those questions in three key documents:
- The bond issue informational pamphlet
- The property tax bill
The Auditor General’s school district spending analysis:
Informational Pamphlet
There is a wealth of information on the pages of this pamphlet. It pays to read it carefully.
For example, on page 3 we learn that the amount of the bond issue is $340,000,000. We also have the usual language that money generated by this bond may only be used for capital projects, not operational funds like teacher salaries. Finally, we get the standard warning that if the bond issue is not approved, the district will be forced to make cuts in other areas, such as layoffs and reduction in school supplies.
On page 7 we learn that the total cost of the bond issue will be $558,716,667, spread over a 22-year period and paid for by a new property tax levy.
Arguments for and against begin on page 11. It is noteworthy that the vast majority of those expressing an opinion are current or previous politicians. Input from common taxpayers is almost non-existent.
Property Tax Bill
Here is where we learn how much we are spending already, to determine whether we can afford to spend more.
If you pay your property tax yourself, then you received a very detailed bill. If your property tax is paid via an escrow account, chances are that you did not get a full statement, but you can obtain one by following these steps:
Click HERE
- Enter your parcel number
- Click on “Search”
- Scrawl down to “About Your Parcel”
- Click on “Most Recent Tax Document”
The information contained in this bill is pretty much self-explanatory. However, if you have difficulty understanding it, you may view an annotated sample bill by clicking HERE
We will be looking at three very important tables contained in the property tax bill:
It is noteworthy that 28% of our tax was imposed by us, via bond issues and/or budget overrides.
| WHO IS TAXING ME | PERCENT |
| STATE OFFICIALS HAVE LEVIED | 0% |
| COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS HAVE LEVIED | 13% |
| ELECTED SCHOOL BOARDS HAVE LEVIED | 44% |
| DISTRICT VOTERS (YOU AND I VOTED FOR) | 28% |
| CITY COUNCILS HAVE LEVIED | 12% |
| SPECIAL DISTRICT BOARDS HAVE LEVIED | 3% |
| TOTAL | 100% |
Schools/Education receive the greatest share of spending. This pretty much parallels the percentage of the state budget appropriations. The question here is whether this level of spending is too little, too much, or just right. You decide with your vote.
| WHERE DO MY TAXES GO | PERCENT |
| SCHOOLS/EDUCATION | 57% |
| CITY OF PHOENIX | 23% |
| GENERAL COUNTY | 13% |
| SPECIAL DISTRICTS | 7% |
| TOTAL | 100% |
Since Schools/Education are the beneficiaries of well over half of our property tax, it may be interesting to see how that money is being used.
| SCHOOLS/EDUCATION | PERCENT |
| PV UNIFIED | 51% |
| PV UNIFIED BONDS | 17% |
| PV UNIFIED OVERRIDES | 12% |
| COMMUNITY COLLEGE DIST | 16% |
| COMMUNITY COLLEGE DIST BONDS | 1% |
| WEST-MEC | 3% |
| TOTAL | 100% |
Auditor General School district spending analysis
This is the latest analysis available, which is for FY2022. The FY2023 report will not be available until sometime in early 2024.
This report analyses every district in the state. We are concentrating on PVUSD because the proposed bond issue we are discussing involves PVUSD. You may view the whole report by clicking HERE
We have a lot of information in this report, some of it very relevant to the question of whether more taxpayer money should be given to this district. Among the most relevant ones are the following:
This is a large district, with an enrollment of 27,443. However, enrollment has been declining steadily. Over the last 5 years, enrollment has declined by 11%.
The total spending per student has been increasing steadily. It went from $13,543 in FY2021 to $14,884 in FY2022. This constitutes a 9.9% increase.
Whether we are getting our money’s worth may be determined by the following chart.
Are we satisfied with these results? A long-term investment in bonds, accompanied by the usual tax increase, is something that should not be taken lightly. Hopefully, the foregoing material will go a long way toward the determination of whether to vote YES or NO.