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PRIOR LAKE

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 17, 2011

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www.plamerican.com

AMERICAN School board approves 2.75-percent levy decrease Board also OKs final 2011-12 budget following truth-intaxation hearing BY MERYN FLUKER mfluker@swpub.com

Taxpayers within the Prior LakeSavage Area School District will see a drop in the school portion of their tax bills. On Monday, the District 719 School Board adopted the final 2011 property tax levy following a truth-in-taxation

forum. At $25.24 million, the 2012 levy is not only a 2.75-percent drop from the 2011 levy – valued at $25.95 million – it’s more than .4 percent lower than the $25.36 million preliminary 2012 levy the board approved in September. The district’s shrinking levy is due in part to a 3.9-percent drop in local property values and a 5.6-percent decrease in adjusted net tax capacity. Earlier this fall, the School Board approved refunding two building bonds, a move that – as Director of Business Affairs Julie Cink predicted in September – contributed to the $120,000 reduction between the preliminary and fi nal 2012 levies. “Despite all of the fi nancial con-

cerns we’ve had over the last decade ‌ I’m proud that we can reduce our levy and reduce it under real terms,â€? said Board Chairman Eric Pratt, who called the levy decrease “appropriate given the housing market.â€? Eric The only signifiPratt cant change between this year’s and last year’s levies, according to Cink, is the almost $48,000 increase in other post employment benefits (OPEB), which refers to benefits such as health, dental and

“Despite all of the financial concerns we’ve had over the last decade, I’m proud that we can reduce our levy and reduce it under real terms.� Eric Pratt Board chairman life insurance that the district pays for retirees. That value jumped to $732,935 this year, compared with $ 685,207 last year, contributing to an approximately $232,000 rise in the general fund portion of the levy.

JOIN THE CHAT SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE DISTRICT’S BUDGET AND LEVY AT

www.plamerican.com

District budget to page 3 ÂŽ

SCOTT COUNTY BUDGET

Farmers, some homeowners feel squeeze of tax changes

A SECONDARY-STUDENT SALUTE Twin Oaks Middle School eighth-grader Hunter Sandness (center) shakes hands with Tech. Sgt. Matthew Russell while classmate Amber Kusler prepares to shake hands with Master Sgt. Mathew Weber. The students, both from Prior Lake, showed their gratitude to the soldiers, who serve in the Minneapolis Air Force Reserves. Russell and Weber visited the Twin Oaks media center to share their experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan with social studies students. They were among the soldiers who received students’ care packages last school year.

BY SHANNON FIECKE sfiecke@swpub.com

The state deficit solution is hitting home. Greg Silus lives in a portion of New Market Township where property values have fared better than the rest of the county. His neighborhood’s reward: 20-percent property tax hikes. “That equates to $1,0 0 0,� pronounced Silus, whose assessed home value actually rose after decreasing in 2011. To soften the blow from eliminating the state’s homestead credit, legislators replaced the credit with a market value exclusion that shifts the increased property tax burden off lower-priced homes. Silus and his neighbors are footing the bill. But farmers – whose agricultural land never benefitted from the homestead credit in the fi rst place – are hit the hardest. “We live in a $ 50,000 home and our taxes went up 38 percent,� said Jim Dubbe, a Sand Creek Township farmer whose land taxes have gone up by double digits on all five parcels (68 percent on one). “That’s $2,300 from last year to this year, and we just can’t sustain that. It went up a lot last year.�

To donate Twin Oaks and Hidden Oaks students are participating in Operation Send-A-Smile again this year and hope to send at least 125 boxes to American soldiers stationed abroad. The staff and students are accepting donations through Monday, Dec. 21. Along with money to pay for postage to send the packages, suggested donations include hard candy, toiletries and letters of gratitude and support. Donations can be dropped off at the main office at Twin Oaks, 15860 Fish Point Road, Prior Lake. PHOTO BY MERYN FLUKER / REPRINTS AT PHOTOS.PLAMERICAN.COM

County budget to page 3 ÂŽ

United States Postal Service offers mail security tips for customers As the holiday season approaches and families begin embarking on trips, the United States Postal Service is reminding customers to take the appropriate steps to protect their mail while they’re away. “Every day, the U.S. Postal Service safely delivers millions of valuable pieces of mail,� USPS spokesperson

Peter Nowacki said in a press release. “Postal Inspectors across the country work hard to protect and safeguard the mail. But with more than 150 million addresses, they can’t do the job alone. So the Postal Service offers these tips to help keep your mail safe.� Never send cash or coins in the mail. Use checks or money orders.

Promptly remove mail from your mailbox and don’t leave your mail out overnight. If you won’t be home until late, ask a trusted friend or neighbor to pick up your mail. Have your local post office hold or temporarily forward your mail while on vacation or absent from your home for a long period of time. If you don’t receive a check or

INSIDE OPINION/4 OBITUARIES/9 SPORTS/11-12 AMERICAN SLICE/15 CALENDAR/19 TO REACH US SUBSCRIBE: (952) 345-6682 EDITOR: (952) 345-6378 OR EDITOR@PLAMERICAN.COM

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other valuable mail you’re expecting, contact the issuing agency immediately. If you change your address, immediately notify your post office and anyone with whom you do business via the mail. Consider starting a neighborhood watch program. By exchanging work and vacation schedules with

trusted friends and neighbors, you can watch each other’s mailboxes (as well as homes). If you observe a mail thief in progress, call the local police immediately, and then call the U.S. Postal Inspection Service at (877) 876-2455. To report a mail theft or other mail-related crime, visit postalinspectors.uspis.gov.

VOL. 52 ISSUE 12

CLASSIFIEDS/23-25

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