“Super Tuesday” proved to be a historic day for Illinois Schools as Williamson County voters narrowly approved a 1% sales tax increase for school construction projects among the counties five school districts. It was the first time in state history that a county attempted to use the newly created County School Facility Occupation Tax Law that was recently approved by the legislature. The sales tax is projected to generate approximately $7.6 million a year and will be distributed among the Crab Orchard, Carterville, Herrin, Marion, and Johnston City School Districts. The new sales tax will go into effect on July 1 and will exempt prescription drugs, groceries, and state titled vehicles. All revenue generated from the sales tax must be used for new construction, building renovations, or for the reduction of outstanding bond debt for the purpose of property tax relief.
So how might this impact Franklin County Schools? It is projected that a 1% sales tax increase in Franklin County would generate approximately $2.6 million a year. While that is considerably less than our friends in the neighboring county, it is still a significant amount that could be used for our building needs. In the Frankfort School District, any “sales tax money” would most certainly be used for new construction or renovation to our 87 year-old high school building. Keep in mind that the kindergarten class of 2007 will graduate from FCHS in 2020 as the high school building celebrates its 100 year anniversary. Something to think about…
