Assembly passes bill allowing some schools to raise taxes

MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- The Wisconsin Assembly has passed a bill allowing low-spending school districts in Wisconsin to raise property taxes without a vote.

The bill passed 91-2 on Tuesday would only apply to districts where votes have not rejected a property tax increase in the past three years. The goal is to address an inequity in the school aid formula that has penalized low-spending districts.

About 100 districts are expected to be eligible.

The measure would increase the maximum that qualifying low-spending districts can spend on a combination of local property taxes and state aid per student from $9,100 to $9,400 for the 2018-2019 school year.

The bill would also increase by $6.5 million the amount of sparsity aid available to 144 qualifying schools that have 745 or fewer students and membership density of less than 10 students per square mile.