Miami-Dade school board to set final tax rate

The largest chunk of many property owners’ tax bills will be set Wednesday when the Miami-Dade County School Board meets to finalize its budget.

The school district is set to approve a slightly lower tax rate of $7.61 per $1,000 of taxable property value. The bulk of that rate is actually set by the Legislature, which sets a minimum that school boards must levy in order to tap into state funds.

Since property values are up, the average homeowner claiming a homestead exemption will pay about $2 more. However, the typical homeowner participating in the Save Our Homes program will save about $46, according to district estimates.

The district will also cast a final vote on its $4.8 billion budget in what has been a largely uncontroversial budget year. Included in the 2015-2016 budget: additional funding for bilingual education, grants to help open new health clinics and money for raises for teachers and other district employees.

The school board’s meeting begins at 11 a.m. with special presentations, and the final budget hearings are scheduled to start at 6 p.m. The school board meets in the auditorium of the administration building, which is located at 1450 NE Second Avenue in Miami.

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This story was originally published September 8, 2015 at 6:16 PM with the headline "Miami-Dade school board to set final tax rate."