Lemont School District Asks Voters For Permanent Tax Hike To Add 40 Classrooms

Lemont-Bromberek School District 113A is asking residents to approve a permanent operating tax increase on November 3. Superintendent Dr. Courtney Orzel states the district needs a permanent rate hike rather than a building bond because the district must pay for both the physical construction and the ongoing costs of staffing and maintaining new classrooms. The proposed 36-cent limiting rate increase is estimated to generate approximately $6 million annually. Orzel explains that a bond would cover construction but would not provide the revenue needed to operate those spaces. The board selected this approach to address facility needs and operating costs through a single financial plan.

The district projects capital costs of between $40 million and $45 million for additions across its four schools. Orzel notes that building classrooms without the resources to staff them would not solve long-term enrollment challenges. The district spends approximately $6,500 less per student annually than the Illinois average. With about 2,730 students, this efficiency represents nearly $18 million in lower annual spending compared to a hypothetical district at the statewide average. Even with the proposed $6 million in new revenue, the district would still operate about $12 million below that comparison, assuming other spending remains unchanged.

This would be only the third permanent operating tax rate increase in the district's last 50 years. The last approved operating rate increase was in 1977. A construction bond passed in 1994 for Old Quarry Middle School, but that was not an operating increase. In 2021, voters approved a new limiting rate of $2.124, which Orzel says came at no cost to taxpayers and supported Central School's reopening and full-day kindergarten. The district has maintained a balanced budget policy and earned the state's highest financial recognition for 14 consecutive years.

Orzel acknowledges that no one wants higher property taxes, especially with rising living costs. She notes that Illinois relies heavily on local property taxes for school funding, and the community lacks significant commercial or industrial property to share the burden. The district's operational expenditure is approximately $13,500 per student, placing it in the lowest 20% statewide. Enrollment has grown by approximately 26 percent over the past decade. The November 3 vote asks residents to fund the addition of 40 classrooms to handle this growth. If the measure fails, the district will continue with larger class sizes and fewer dedicated instructional spaces.

The $6 million annual revenue would be allocated to construction financing, additional teachers and support staff, utilities, and other operating expenses. The plan includes adding seven classrooms at Oakwood, seven at River Valley, 14 at Central, and 12 at Old Quarry. These numbers account for the personnel and operational resources required for the expanded student population.

The board has committed to adjusting the tax levy to ensure the referendum generates only the needed $6 million. Orzel says the financial data used for the ballot language was nearly two years old because Cook County had not yet finalized its second-installment tax bills. When the board adopts its tax levy in December, it will use more current property assessment information to make adjustments. This process aims to minimize the impact on taxpayers. The actual tax rate increase is expected to be less than the 36 cents listed in the referendum question.

Orzel clarifies that the district will not receive additional revenue from property reassessments if the referendum fails. In tax-capped counties like Cook and DuPage, school districts only receive more money from new development, not from increases in existing home values. Reassessments determine how the total tax bill is divided among homeowners, not the total amount the district can collect. A homeowner's property value can rise significantly without the district receiving corresponding additional funding. The district remains limited to its existing collection cap plus small annual inflation adjustments.