In December, the Bushnell-Prairie City Board of Education passed a resolution to increase the working cash fund  through the sale of bonds for $3.6M dollars to make improvements at Bushnell-Prairie City High School. These funds, in addition to more than $500,000 of ESSER III grant funds, will support updated bathrooms; locker rooms; new flooring in all hallways and classrooms; new classroom doors to improve security; new lighting in all classrooms and hallways; window replacement; cafeteria improvements; roof replacement over the library; new seating, lighting, and sound systems in the auditorium; installation of an indoor track surface in the gymnasium; and resurfacing of the all-weather outdoor track. These improvements will be done in two phases, with Phase I to begin this summer and focus upon instructional spaces, and Phase II planned for the summer of 2023 with a focus on arts and athletic spaces. The sale of these bonds is a continuation of the improvements undertaken at Bushnell-Prairie City Elementary and Bushnell-Prairie City Junior High. A hearing will be held in January with the bond sales occurring later in the month. Funds should be received in February and the bidding process can begin.

What does this mean for the financial health of the District?
There will be 2 types of bond issuances to generate these funds: 1) self-purchased Working Cash bonds, and 2) debt certificates. The self-purchased Working Cash bonds will be borrowed against the balance in the Education Fund and repaid using County Facilities Sales Tax (1% sales tax) revenues. This will yield an additional $300,000 in revenue to the Education Fund from interest paid; the fund that incurs the greatest amount of expense to operate the District. The debt certificates will be repaid through the debt levy. 

Will this increase the the District's tax rate?
The bond and interest tax rate for the District since 2015 has ranged from .25 to .32. Repayment of the debt certificates will yield a bond and interest tax rate ranging from .27 to .32; not higher than past rates. This range could also decrease should the District's equalized assessed value (property values) continue to be healthy.

As shared with our school community via Skylert in the last week, the Center for Disease Control and the Illinois Department of Health (IDPH) have issued revised guidance relative to COVID-related exclusions. Please click HERE for the health alert issued by the IDPH or click HERE for a simple-to-read summary. Please don't hesitate to contact your school office and/or District Nurse, Kristi White, at [email protected] if you need assistance or have questions.