The District 202/Evanston Township High School Board of Education approved a 5% property tax hike Monday night.
The district says that translates to an additional $132 per year for the owner of a $400,000 house.
Under Illinois law, school property tax hikes are limited to either 5% or the increase in the consumer price index, whichever is lower.
In this case, the CPI was well above 5%, so the tax increase is capped at 5%.
Kendra Williams, the district’s chief financial officer, said the normal CPI and therefore property tax hike is 1% to 3%.
The District 202 tax hike approval comes following a similar maximum 5% capped increase for District 65, which works out to another $262 per year for that same $400,000 house.
If you’re wondering why each district gets a different amount of money for the same 5% increase on the same $400,000 house, the tax rate is higher in D65.
According to the City of Evanston, your property tax dollar breaks down this way: 41% to District 65, 26% to District 202, 17% to the City, 13% to Cook County and other taxing entities, and 3% to the Evanston Public Library.