Wausau School Board Hears Data Regarding Support of Potential Operating Referendum

Tuesday, June 11th, 2024 -- 8:00 AM

(Mike Leischner, WSAU) The Wausau School Board has heard the data regarding support for a potential operating referendum this fall.

According to Mike Leischner with WSAU, Perry Hibner with The Donovan Group says the results of last month’s survey showed support for one option that involves no tax hike, but any increase will be a tough sell. That pattern has played out in districts across the state several times this year.

“In April we correctly predicted every district we worked with, whether it would pass or fail, based on survey results,” said Hibner. ” But the results were closer than expected. Some of that is just people nervous about the economy and other things.”

In those districts, he estimates that uneasiness led respondents to give a less confident answer or skip the survey completely. Survey results for Wausau showed that 61% of respondents would vote yes on a hypothetical referendum question to increase the revenue limit by $3 million annually.

In this scenario, the district would maintain current staffing levels with no increase in the mill rate. A separate question that suggested a $6 million revenue increase, adding $54 per $100,000 of property value to the typical tax bill, got support from 45% of respondents.

The survey also included a hypothetical $9 million revenue increase which would add $108 per $100,000. That scenario received just 28% support. The survey ran from early to mid-May with nearly 2,000 responses.

It’s unclear how Wausau’s recent city-wide revaluation process impacted the survey or how numbers were calculated for the three referendum questions. Board members and Hibner both agreed that would be a wild card for the process.

“If you’re someone who had your house reassessed and it went up by $50, $60, $70 thousand- you’re curious about how that will impact your next tax bill. As a result, you’re nervous about what happens here,” said Hibner. “I think many people are concerned with [those on] fixed incomes, now dealing with re-evaluation [of their homes]. Those are specifics that I think people will want to know,” said Board President Jim Bouche.

To see the survey results for yourself, click here. The board has until mid-August to place a referendum question on the November ballot. This means the item will likely come back for discussion again in July before any potential question is crafted by the board’s legal team and voted on later this summer.

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