New Albany-Plain Local Schools is primarily funded through the local support of its taxpayers. At this time, 85.7% of our General Operating Fund is received from local revenue sources, with the remaining 14.3% received from the State.

 

Of our local revenue sources, the bulk of our funding comes from residential property tax, comprising 82.59% of the local revenue total. The remainder comes from commercial real estate and public utilities taxes.

 

Why are New Albany-Plain Local School District residents responsible for such a large share of the district's funding?

The average school district in Ohio receives approximately 44% of their funding from the state of Ohio; however, our district only receives approximately 15% of its funding from the state. In fact, the $582 per pupil that we receive from the state is less than what even private schools are guaranteed - $1089 per student. Overall, New Albany-Plain Local Schools receives less than a third of the state support than we should receive according to Ohio's own funding formula.

This occurs because the New Albany community is considered high-wealth and, therefore, its schools do not receive the same level of outside assistance as less wealthy areas. Additionally, the district has experienced explosive growth over the past fifteen years - growing from 1,693 students in 1999 to 4,814 students this school year. Despite this 284% increase in our student population, our revenue from the state has only increased by 36%. That places the burden of educating our students firmly on the shoulder of local taxpayers.

 

More questions? Use the links to the left to learn more about school funding in Ohio and your school district taxes.

Due to the nature of school funding in Ohio, levies in New Albany have occurred on a regular basis as we've continue to grow and fixed costs have risen.