Dearest reader,
Today a reader sent me a question about the millage questions on the ballot. The reader stated that they were difficult to understand, and that the reader was unsure how much taxes would increase if voted yes.
So, let's talk about Hemlock, property taxes, and a little thing called compound growth. 📜
Lady B took the average residential taxable values from two townships within Hemlock Public Schools:
🏡 Richland Township: $78,046
🏡 Thomas Township: $99,395
That gives us a combined, equally weighted average of approximately $88,721.
Using actual school millages from a Hemlock homeowner's 2025 tax bill and an illustrative 2.9% annual increase in taxable value, Lady B calculated what those school taxes could look like over the next 10 years.
And because Hemlock's proposed $17.75 MILLION bond could extend for 27 years, I also projected the totals over that period.
But here's where the ledger gets interesting. 👀
Hemlock has presented the proposed bond as a 0.00-mill net increase in 2027.
What Lady B has NOT been able to obtain publicly is:
📜 The complete debt repayment schedule.
📜 The projected interest rate and total interest cost.
📜 The annual principal and interest payments.
📜 The projected combined debt millage over the life of the bonds.
Without those figures, taxpayers cannot independently determine the full financial impact of the proposed borrowing.
And while the district may call the proposal tax-neutral, that does not make it debt-neutral.
The accompanying chart illustrates projected school taxes using existing millages and taxable-value growth. It does NOT represent the additional cost of the proposed bond.
Lady B isn't asking anyone to vote yes or no.
She's asking a much simpler question:
If taxpayers are being asked to authorize $17.75 million in new borrowing, shouldn't they be able to see what it's projected to cost before they vote?
The ballot tells us how much Hemlock wants to borrow.
Lady B would rather like to see the rest of the ledger.
With receipts and respect,
Lady B 🪶
#LadyBudgetdown #HemlockPublicSchools #SchoolBonds #PropertyTaxes #TaxpayerTransparency #MichiganSchools