If the bond is not approved, the district will not be able to fund certain safety and security enhancements, maintain all of its current assets, build a new elementary school, upgrade district facilities for additional safety and security, fund additional technology and transportation needs, like student and staff computers and school buses.  Without bond funding, many major projects that focus on school safety, security, and growth cannot be started, often putting school districts years behind residential growth trends. 

The proposed $120 million bond authorization bond sales will be structured so that there will be no expected tax rate increase to the community.  The combined tax rate of outstanding and proposed new bonds is projected to be at $.57 per $100 of limited assessed valuation. The impact of the bond on taxes will depend on the assessed value of each taxpayer's property. The district encourages all taxpayers to enter the specifics from their individual property tax statement into the district’s property tax calculator for an estimate of the tax amount for their home.  

Bond programs and M&O Overrides that are approved by the voters are supported by secondary property taxes in the district.  The district has had a priority focus on the district’s property tax rate, which has been declining in recent years. 

The chart below shows how the district has had a decreasing tax rate over time:

The tax rate related to current outstanding bond sales in FY 2025, will be $.58 per $100 of Limited Assessed Value, which continues the property tax rate decline detailed in the above chart.  This is due to outstanding bonds sales continuing to be paid off and the assessed value of property in the district continuing to increase.  If the new bond program is approved by the voters, the FY 2026 property tax rate will be $.57 per $100 of Limited Assessed Value and is based on current and projected property values and the district’s current plans for issuance of new bonds. The projected average additional tax rate per $100 of limited assessed valuation is $.27.

The following table will be in the Voter Information Pamphlet for community members to review showing the expected tax rate for each year for currently outstanding bonds and the proposed new bonds:

If the bond initiative is approved, a future elementary school will be built on one of four parcels of land owned by the district. The district will conduct an assessment and look at multiple data points prior to selecting which of the four parcels is the best location for a new school. 

A Peoria Unified high school in the northern portion of the district is not included in the proposed bond. During their review, the Citizens’ Advisory Committee asked for data from a demographic study which was conducted to analyze the growth in the northern portion of the district. Although Liberty High School is currently at capacity, its enrollment is expected to remain flat for the next seven to 10 years. This is due to inflation, the increasing cost of homes, lower birth rates, and the recent announcement of a charter high school expected to break ground in Vistancia. Without an immediate need for a new high school, including this in the proposed bond authorization was not a top priority for the Citizens’ Advisory Committee.

The district has not had a bond authorization since 2012. All bonds have been fully sold and expended under this program. The details on how the dollars were spent can be found here.

The district will have several mechanisms in place to share information in a transparent and accountable way with our community:

• An Information Report agenda item at each Governing Board meeting related to individual bond funded facility maintenance, upgrades and construction projects, Purchase Orders and project status to date.

• A list of completed bond projects by school and location on the district’s website.

• As required by state statute annually, a public meeting for administration to provide an update to the Governing Board and Community on the status of the bond program including the cost of construction, capital improvements and the status of the bond program to date, remaining bond sales, remaining bond proceeds in comparison to the categories, projects and dollar amounts that were approved by the voters in the bond election.

• The district is required to have an annual financial audit by a Certified Public Accounting Firm each year.  The audited financial statements are available to the public on the district’s website and there is an annual audit presentation to the Governing Board each year.

• Each October, the district makes an annual presentation to the community detailing how bond funds were spent. View the presentations.

Yes. This November the two largest neighboring preK-12 public school districts to Peoria Unified, the Deer Valley and Dysart school districts, will also have an initiative on the ballot.  

The district posts its last 10 years of annual budgets, expenditure reports and audited financial statements on the district’s website. Search our financial documents here.