The Stillwater Board of Education adopted a proposed $28,544,605 budget for the 2022-23 school year at their April 12, 2022, meeting.

The proposed budget would preserve existing programs and services, include the purchase of three new school buses, and include funding for debt service payments, salary increases for faculty and staff, and increases in employee benefit costs.

Spending under the proposal would decrease by .60%, or $173,014, over the current-year budget. The decrease in spending is a result of projected faculty and staff retirements, a slight decrease in debt service payments and removal of an appropriation for construction of a new concession stand that is currently underway.

The projected tax levy—the total amount of money a school district can raise through property taxes—would increase by 2.99%, which is below Stillwater’s maximum allowable tax levy increase as determined by the state’s tax levy “cap” formula (4.65%).

District officials estimate that school tax rates, which are the amount of taxes residents pay per $1,000 of assessed property value, will decrease by 0.29%. Final school tax rates are set in August when assessment rolls are finalized.

District residents will vote on the proposed budget on Tuesday, May 17, from 12-9 p.m. in the  auditorium. They will also vote for three Board of Education candidates, and on trustees and a proposed budget for the Stillwater Public Library, which has the same service boundary as the school district but is not governed by the district.