School says surtax reduction will eliminate $275,000 annually from district’s budget

The Lebanon R-3 School Board discussed the proposal to cut the Laclede County Surtax that will be on the November ballot at its meeting last Tuesday. Superintendent Dr. David Schmitz talked about a Laclede County Surtax reduction that was placed on the November 8, 2022 ballot by the Laclede County Commission. The current surtax of $1.03 per $100 of assessed value on commercial real property was established in 1985 to replace revenue that was lost when the merchant and manufacturer “inventory tax” was removed around 1984. According to a press release from the school district, recipients of the original “inventory tax”, received proportional revenue through the 1985 surtax. The surtax is paid exclusively by commercial real property owners and has remained unchanged for 37 years, continuing to meet the funding needs for county services such as the school districts, library board, health department, SB40 board, road districts, Laclede County, and municipalities within the county.   For more on this story see Wednesday's LCR.