COLUMBIA, MO. -- Update: Friday, Aug. 27 at 4:45 p.m.

The recently-approved tax levy increase in Columbia looks like it won’t be as much as expected.

On Friday afternoon, the school district along with the Boone County Clerk’s office announced they revised the increase from a 14.75-cent increase to a 7.75-cent increase.

The school district said the original number did not include locally asses railroad and utility values.

County Assessor Tom Schauwecker noticed the problem Thursday afternoon, which was just a few hours after the school board approved the increase.

The district immediately recalculated the rate and found the increase will be about half as much as originally announced.

The total levy will now be $4.8492.

The Columbia School District Board of Education will have a special session Tuesday morning to consider the tax levy rate change.

Update: Thursday, Aug. 26 at 11:02 p.m.

The Columbia Board of Education approved a 15-cent tax levy increase on Thursday morning.

Board Members held a public hearing on the levy increase before they raised their tax rates.

School Officials said the combination of a bad economy and a loss of revenue has forced them to increase taxes for the first time in 7 years.

The higher tax levy means the owner of a Columbia home with a county-appraised value of $150,000 now owes an additional $42.04 on their annual school tax bill that they get in December. This year’s tax increase is still below the ceiling set by Columbia voters in 2003.

“Once you approve a ceiling like we did in 2003, we adjust it up and down based on a legal criteria," Columbia Public School Superintendent Dr. Chris Belcher said. "This has nothing to do with that. This isn’t asking the voters to approve anything. This is just the board working within their legal capacity. That makes it hard to understand. People hear the words 'tax' and 'rate increase' they assume something was done without a vote. That is absolutely not true.”

School Board Members have the authority to adjust tax levies without a vote of the people. Voters approve school bond issues and any increases in tax levy ceilings.

“Some years our revenues are better and allow us to put things lower," Columbia School Board President Jan Mees said. "This year, we felt the need to make sure that we have enough in the budget that we have set out to run the school district this year. This is our way of making up for some of those losses.”

Two representatives of two teachers’ organizations were the only ones to speak during a public hearing before the tax levy increase vote. Both pointed out how Columbia School Officials have been cutting back for the past three years and teachers can no longer keep slicing away without sacrificing class sizes or programs.

School boards all across the state are also approving tax levy increases this week. Columbia School Officials said their tax levy increase is much lower than most Missouri school districts this year.

In Columbia, more than 50 percent of the school district’s funds come from local tax dollars, property taxes and Prop C revenues.

Original Story:

The Columbia Board of Education approved a tax levy increase to $4.9192 from $4.7717.  The board held a public hearing on the levy prior to voting this morning. 

The owner of a home with a county-appraised value of $150,000 now owes the district an additional $42.04 a year with the approved rate increase, if the appraised value has not changed from last year.

A tax levy is the rate set for computing how much tax a property owner pays per $100 of assessed valuation. In Columbia, more than 50 percent of the school district’s funds come from local tax dollars, property taxes and Prop C revenues.