The Manitowoc Public School District has approved its 2025-2026 budget.
In a letter to SeehaferNews.com, Superintendent Lee Thennes called it a “balanced budget”, in which they levy just under $10 million from the taxpayers.
In fact, the District had the opportunity to levy up to $13 million, but decided to under-levy by $3.07 million, which Thennes said was a “continued effort to be fiscally responsible and minimize the tax burden on local residents.”
The total tax levy for the 2025-2026 year reflects a 3% increase from last year, but without the under-levy, the increase would have been around 13%.
The mill rate, which represents the amount of property tax that is paid on real estate, stands at $5.22 per $1,000 of assessed property value.
That is 58 cents less than last year, and the second-lowest rate in the last decade.
Additionally, $6 million of the district’s tax levy is being diverted to private schools and special education vouchers, which represents 20.3% of the total tax levy.
The voucher program also accounts for $1.33 of the total $ 6.55 mill rate, meaning over 20% of the district’s mill rate is dedicated to funding private school tuition.
Superintendent Thennes closed his statement saying, “MPSD continues to advocate for transparency in education funding, especially as more public dollars are redirected away from public schools.”
