Douglas County schools weigh November tax hike for teacher pay, services

A Douglas County home valued at about $712,000 would carry roughly $214 more a year in school taxes if the district sends a new rate-based mill levy override to voters and the measure passes. District leaders have said the ask would be built around about $30 a year for every $100,000 of residential value, a cost that would land on top of one of the metro area's pricier housing markets.

Superintendent Erin Kane said the district’s mill levy override rate is significantly lower than it was in 2013 because earlier overrides were fixed-dollar amounts that did not keep pace with inflation or growth. DCSD says the new money could go toward teacher raises, special-education services, career-and-technical education and school safety upgrades, as inflation has squeezed the budget and school funding has not kept up with rising costs.

At a public hearing, district polling found 55% of respondents favorable to a mill levy override, and staff was expected to bring a formal proposal to the Douglas County School District Board of Education later this month, with a final referral vote possible this summer. Kane has said the district is also weighing a rate-based MLO that would adjust with growth and inflation instead of another fixed-dollar measure, part of a longer effort to keep tax rates stable over time.

The ask would follow a $490 million bond approved by Douglas County voters in November 2024 with 60% support, and district materials say the 2023 mill levy override produced about a 9% teacher pay increase and helped reduce turnover. In earlier ballot messaging, DCSD also said its current mill levy override was about $2,000 per student below neighboring districts and teacher pay was about $20,000 lower, a gap school leaders still point to as they seek another funding lift. Even as the district says its bond mill rate is expected to fall from 5 mills to 3 mills unless voters approve new debt, one Highlands Ranch resident and former DCSD parent, Liz Wagner, said she would oppose an MLO if it were paired with a collective bargaining agreement. Douglas County School District says it is Colorado’s third-largest district, serving more than 62,000 students across more than 90 schools.