photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Lawrence school board members meet on Monday, Sept. 14, 2026.

Lawrence school board members have adopted the budget for 2026-2027, and it includes a property tax rate decrease.

Following a public hearing on Monday, board members approved an approximately $267.6 million budget for 2026-2027 budget with a mill levy – or property tax rate – of 52.204 mills. One mill is equal to one dollar of property taxes for every $1,000 of a property’s assessed value.

The mill levy is the total between four separate mill levy amounts: one each for its general operating fund, debt service fund, capital outlay fund and various other levies. Those levies are combined to calculate the current budget’s mill levy.

Board member Shannon Kimball said the “budget” approved on Monday was not necessarily what the public thinks. As the Journal-World reported, the school district’s budget is put together before key budget activities take place.

One example is how the general fund is calculated each year. The general fund is based on a student enrollment count conducted on Sept. 20 and other weightings, including transportation costs for students who live 2.5 miles or more from school; students eligible for free lunch; and special education funding.

“This is a very different process than what happens at the city and county,” Kimball said.

The mill levy approved on Monday is also the maximum mill levy the district shared with the Douglas County Clerk in July. The maximum mill levy means the district can decide on a mill levy lower than this amount, but it cannot go higher.

The mill levy of 52.204 mills also exceeds the revenue-neutral rate – which is the tax rate that generates the exact same amount of property tax dollars as the previous year, based on the current year’s total property values. The district’s revenue-neutral rate is 49.613 mills.

However, in comparison to some of the mill levies proposed by district staff in previous school years, it’s lower. In 2023-2024, the proposed mill levy was 52.210 mills and the following year, it was 52.273 mills. Last school year, staff proposed a mill levy of 52.345 mills.

IN OTHER BUSINESS, BOARD MEMBERS:

• Heard a presentation from district staff about how the district’s graduation rates have changed since 2019 and post secondary success. In 2025, the graduation rate was 88.7%, and in comparison to 2019, the rate was 82.8%.

• Approved minor renovations to the Facilities and Operations campus, 711 E. 23rd St., to ensure that there is adequate space to operate the district’s transportation services at a cost not to exceed $75,000 with a 15% contingency, totaling $86,250.

According to the agenda, the campus modifications include equipping two adequately sized bus service bays for school buses, the addition of an access ramp, and a driver center space. The goal is to have this project completed by Nov. 30.

In an effort to save money, the district decided to utilize the campus instead of leasing an external facility. The district has also switched bus service contracts from First Student to Durham School Services in 2026-2027.