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Two Salt Lake County school boards signed off on property tax increases on Tuesday, citing a need to offset funds paid to the state's independent charter schools.

Residents in Salt Lake City School District will see an annual increase of $4.67 per $100,000 of assessed property value, or roughly $9 for the average home.

The increase will net $1.5 million for the district, $900,000 of which will be diverted to charter school coffers.

"We're at a point where we need to have additional revenue sources to pay this so it doesn't interfere with the money that goes to our district schools and our district students," Salt Lake City school board President Heather Bennett said.

The tax increase will also fund an expansion of the district's Peer Assistance and Review program — a mentor program for new teachers — and training for school personnel.

Board members voted 6-1 to approve the tax increase, with Michael Clara casting the lone opposing vote.

Clara said it is unfair to ask taxpayers to hold the district blameless when children and their families choose to enroll in charters.

"I would like to see us take responsibility for our actions that repel people, that compel them to want to go to another school," he said.

In Granite School District, board members voted unanimously in favor of a $860,000 tax increase that will cost $4.99 each year for the average home.

Both district's tax increases, as well as a proposed tax hike in Murray School District, come after recent legislation changing the way charter schools are funded.

Under state law, school districts are required to share property tax revenue with charter schools, which do not have taxing authority.

That revenue sharing is known as local replacement funding, and districts previously had the option of paying the lesser of two numbers — 25 percent of their local district's per-pupil revenue or 25 percent of the average per-pupil revenue in the state.

Lawmakers removed the lesser-of option during the most recent legislative session. That change created a uniform funding formula, but put several school districts on the hook to write larger checks for the state's charter schools.

The entirety of Granite's $860,000 tax increase will be used to offset the district's increased charter funding costs.

In his July newsletter as president of the Utah Taxpayers Association, Sen. Howard Stephenson described the tax increases as "despicable" and accused school districts of misleading residents.

The Draper Republican said the option to pay less than 25 percent was a "drafting error" corrected by lawmakers, and districts continue to receive the bulk of per-student local revenue when a student enrolls in a charter school.

The newsletter singled out Granite School District's tax increase as particularly unjustified because the district stands to gain from the passage of SB97, which raised $75 million through a statewide property tax to establish an equalized funding floor for schools.

"Just because some school districts have been incorrectly keeping higher revenues for charter students doesn't justify a tax hike on property owners now that the windfall has been removed," he wrote.

But rather than a revenue windfall, Granite School District spokesman Ben Horsley said, the funding now owed to the state's charters comes at the expense of teacher salaries and vital programs.

Without a tax increase, Horsley said, the district would face a decline in property tax revenue in order to prop up independent charter schools.

"We're not going to cut service on our own students to provide for students we don't serve," Horsley said.

Bennett said the tax increase might not be needed if charter enrollment led to a smaller student population at district schools. But enrollment, and per-student costs, have continued to climb along with the price tag of charter schools.

"We still have essentially the same number of students we had before we started to contribute this way," she said.

A Truth in Taxation hearing is scheduled for the Murray School District on Aug. 13, after which the board is expected to vote on the district's tax proposal.

Tax increases

Salt Lake City School District

Total new revenue • $1.5 million

Impact • $4.67 per year per $100,000 of assessed property value, or $9.07 for average home.

Use • $900,000 for increased local replacement (charter school) funding and $600,000 for teacher training

Granite School District

Total new revenue • $860,000

Impact • $2.12 per $100,000, or $4.99 for average home

Use • Total amount will be used to offset increase in local replacement funding

Proposed Murray School District

Total new revenue • $605,000

Impact • $11.44 per $100,000, or $27.69 for average home

Use • $115,000 for local replacement funding, $490,000 for additional personnel, training and other expenses.

Truth in taxation hearing will be held Aug. 13