News for
May 20, 2026

 

By Myrna Trauntvein
TN Correspondent

An increase in the tax levy rate is being proposed for the Juab School District.

Darin Clark, Juab School District Business Administrator, said that the proposed property tax increase for the district may actually mean that each property owner will pay less in taxes or, at least, their tax will remain neutral.

“Here is how it works,” said Clark. “Utah law requires us to separate certain levies--one is increasing but another is decreasing by more.”

He said that Utah Law intentionally requires taxing entities to separately disclose increases to the certified tax rate even when other tax levies may decrease at the same time.

The Juab School District Board of Education is proposing to increase the Capital Outlay Levy which is part of the certified rate by $1.1 million to fund improvements, remodeling and expansion of the Career and Technology Education (CTE) building at Juab High School, he said.

But the district will be lowering the Debt Service Levy which is outside the certified rate.

“As bond payments decline, this levy will decrease by $1.15 million,” said Clark. “For taxpayers whose property values remain unchanged, the total school district portion of their property tax bill will likely be slightly lower than last year.”

The total school district taxes with both levies combined shows that (X)$1.1 million capital outlay (certified tax rate) minus the debt service levy (outside the certified tax rate) of minus $1.15 million (Y) would result in a net decrease of $45,000.

“The certified tax rate is the total of the levies that would generate the same revenue as last year (plus new growth),” said Clark. “Because we are increasing the capital outlay levy above that amount, Utah law requires a Truth in Taxation hearing.”

“A tax increase and I pay less?” asked Clark, “How can that be?”

“The bottom line is that a required tax increase notice must be advertised but a lower total tax impact for most taxpayers will be the result,” he said. “Our goal is transparency. We want you, the property tax payer, to understand both the legal requirement and the real impact on your bill.”

He said that, in this case, the Juab School District will use the tax to help fund needed work on schools.

The district is proposing to increase the capital outlay portion of the certified rate by $1.1 million to help fund improvements, remodeling and the expansion of the CTE (Career and Technology) Building on the high school campus.

“Because this exceeds the certified rate,” said Clark, “state law requires the district to hold a Truth in Taxation hearing and advertise the increase; At the same time, however, the district’s debt service levy will decrease by approximately $1.15 million as bond payments decline.”

Juab School District is proposing an increase of approximately $1.1 million in property tax revenue from levies that make up the district’s certified tax rate as required under Utah Truth in Taxation Law.

“Utah requires certain levies to be evaluated separately,” Clark said. “Any increase in these levies must be noticed as a tax increase even if other levies decrease.”

Though it is not immediately obvious, he said, the district is reducing its debt service levy by approximately $1.15 million. Debt Service comes into play when voters approve new bond debt without pushing the total local property tax rate too high. A debt service levy is a tax specifically dedicated to paying off the principal and interest on bonds (usually taken out for large construction or capital improvements).

“The reduction in Debt Service is due to declining bond payments,” said Clark. “When all levies are considered together, the net result is a decrease of about $45,000 total property tax revenue or approximately 0.37 percent.”

He said that means, that for the typical taxpayer, assuming no change in property value is made, the total amount paid to Juab School District will likely be slightly lower than last year.

“Why make this adjustment?” said Clark. “This allows the district to shift resources from debt repayment to facility improvements, classroom space, and CTE expansion without increasing the overall tax burden. The bottom line is, that although required to be presented as a tax increase, the actual impact to taxpayers is neutral to slightly positive.”

The result of these actions will be a shift in the portion of the tax rate from debt repayment toward long-term facility needs., he said.