Taxpayers get quite a bang for their bucks when it comes to funding Allen County Community College, trustees were told Thursday.
College President John Masterson provided the breakdown at the monthly ACCC Board of Trustees meeting of how much each of the 19 community colleges in Kansas rely on local property taxes.
The results, while not surprising, still are noteworthy, Masterson said.
While ranking among the least affluent of the 19 community colleges in terms of property values, ACCC’s ad valorem tax levy still is the third lowest in the state, Masterson said.
That means ACCC depends much less on its taxpayers in comparison to most of the other community colleges.
For example, the assessed value of ACCC’s service area — about $92 million — brings in $1,547,895 in property taxes this year, courtesy of the college’s levy of 16.746 mills.
By comparison, Neosho County Community College’s property taxes bring in $4.1 million (funded through its 33.783-mill levy); Labette Community College, $4.2 million (35.577 mills); Independence Community College, $4.6 million (34.492 mills); Fort Scott Community College, $2.3 million (25.357 mills); and Coffeyville Community College, $8.7 million (36.886 mills).
Even more noteworthy is that ACCC has the smallest mill levy of the six southeast Kansas community colleges, despite having the largest student population of the six.
Big deal, some might reply. Community colleges, universities and other public schools, can lessen dependence on taxpayers by instituting costly tuition and student fees. Surely, ACCC socks it to the students to make up the lost property tax funding, right?
Wrong.
Masterson noted that ACCC students pay $65 per credit hour, plus another $10 per credit hour for book rental, a fraction of what students pay at four-year universities. He said the number also stacks up favorably with the other community colleges, although the college president did not have those numbers available at Thursday’s meeting.
THE COLLEGE, through a $5,000 grant from AT&T, is developing a program that will target students who have earned college credits but didn’t obtain a degree.
The program, which will be matched with $5,000 of in-kind contributions from ACCC, will utilize “completion coaches,” said Bob Reavis, dean of ACCC’s outreach campus in Burlingame.
As many as 600 students have acquired at least 30 hours of college credits without earning a degree of any sort, said Regina Aye, dean of online learning. Aye is working with Reavis to create the program.
If successful, the program could be adapted at other colleges, Reavis said.
TRUSTEES reversed course on an earlier decision and approved appeals of two local business owners to be included in Iola’s neighborhood revitalization program.
In an effort to spark development in designated locations in town, property tax abatements were offered to those who increased the values of the property by at least $10,000. The abatements were 100 percent, less 5 percent retained by the county for administration, for five years and then decline by 20 percent a year to zero.
Owners of American Self Storage and Iola Pharmacy’s satellite office both built their structures within the past four years.
The storage company owners applied to be a part of the program — thus receiving rebates on their property taxes over the ensuing 10 years — when construction began. But their request eventually was not approved because the city lost their application, Mayor Bill Shirley said.
“It wasn’t their fault” the application wasn’t filed in time, Shirley said. “It was the city’s fault.”
Bill Walden, one of the pharmacy owners, explained that the pharmacy was built as part of the Family Physicians medical complex with the assumption that it would receive tax credits through industrial revenue bonds used to fund the facility’s construction.
It wasn’t noticed until earlier this summer that the pharmacy did not qualify for the tax credits because it was a retail business.
Had they known they did not qualify through the state, the pharmacy owners, too, would have applied for inclusion in the revitalization program, Walden said.
“Certainly, they also operated in a good-faith effort,” Shirley agreed. “This company has been very generous to the community.”
Shirley also noted the clinic and storage facilities improved otherwise blighted areas on the east side of town.
Trustees approved the request 4-0, with Harvey Rogers, Spencer Ambler, Larry Manes and Neal Barclay in favor. Trustees Jim Talkington and Jenny Spillman were absent.
The abatements were approved for the remaining seven years both would otherwise have been enrolled in the program.
The city and USD 257 approved also approved both requests. County commissioners have yet to decide.
TRUSTEES also accepted, 4-0, the college’s annual audit report from Jarred, Gilmore & Phillips, P.A.
Phil Jarred told trustees that ACCC’s audit came back “clean” with no violations or compliance issues.
