By Daniel Stefanski |
A bipartisan school tax bill has become law in the State of Arizona.
Earlier this month, Governor Katie Hobbs signed HB 2173, which “revises statutes relating to tax levy calculations for a common school district not within a high school district (Type 03 district), [and] details session law provisions that redirect monies collected by the additional tax in a Type 03 district in TY 2023 to the state General Fund” – according to the overview from the Arizona House of Representatives.
According to a press release from Arizona legislative Republicans, this bill “was introduced after mistakes identified in the current fiscal year caused dramatic tax increases in several rural school districts, most prominently in the Continent Elementary School district in Green Valley.” Due to this bill’s enactment, “elementary-only districts like Continental will no longer pay tuition for these high school students, but rather they will be ‘open enrolled’ in the school of their choice like any other student around the state.”
The three legislators in the district that was particularly targeted by the bill – Republican State Representatives Gail Griffin and Lupe Diaz and State Senator David Gowan – issued statements to cheer on the success of this emergency measure.
“Property tax increases significantly impacted Green Valley residents this year, prompting immediate actions to remedy this situation,” said Representative Gail Griffin. “Despite the complexities involved, collaboration with school finance experts has led to a sustainable solution.”
“We will resolve the issue of overpaid property taxes for these districts in the upcoming budget, Representative Lupe Diaz added. “We have proposed a reasonable resolution to the Governor’s office to provide targeted funding to those rural school districts, so taxpayers receive an equitable reduction in order to pay them back for last year’s overcharge.”
“As soon as we were made aware of these unintended consequences, we swiftly came together to find a solution,” said Senator Gowan. “My amendment on this bill ensures the dollars that should not have been collected will be returned to taxpayers in the form of a deduction on the following year’s property tax. I also made sure the school districts most disproportionally affected in LD-19 were taken care of.”
HB 2173 was sponsored by House Education Committee Chairwoman Beverly Pingerelli.
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
