A slim majority of the DeKalb County school board approved a tax increase Monday while a minority of board members were suspicious enough of administrators' past handling of money to call for an outside investigation.
The tax rate will rise to 23.98 mills. The extra mill will bring in an additional $14.8 million, but the average homeowner will still pay less to the school system than last year because of falling property values.
Board member Paul Womack, repeating previously raised suspicions, led several board members who called for a formal investigation of the school system's Finance and Human Resource departments. Their motion to ask the governor's office to investigate failed in a 5-4 vote.
The motion seemed to take board Chairman Eugene Walker by surprise. "Beg your pardon?" he asked. Womack confirmed that he wanted the governor to investigate whether budget cuts ordered by the school board in past years were implemented, prompting Walker to call the move "ludicrous in the extreme" and "ridiculous."
Later, during a public comment period, several speakers, as often happens, scolded the board for bickering. David Schutten, president of the Organization of DeKalb Educators, an employee advocacy group, noted that the meeting was televised and youngsters might be watching.
"We're setting a bad example for our children," Schutten said.
The tax was approved on a 5-4 vote. It will lead to a $1,456 school tax bill for the average homeowner, said Michael Perrone, the school system's finance chief. That is less than the $1,574 paid last year by the average homeowner because the average home dropped in value by nearly $20,000 to $151,790.
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