Residents living in the Phoenix Union High School District boundaries will see their secondary property taxes increase beginning July 1.

The PUHSD Governing Board voted on June 23 to raise its primary property taxes over the current level to pay for increased expenditures in those areas where the Governing Board has the authority to increase property taxes. The district will see an increase in its primary property tax levy of $687,500 for the next fiscal year.

The amount proposed above will cause Phoenix Union High School District’s primary property taxes on a $100,000 home to increase from $136.60 to $138.23.

Arizona Revised Statutes allow school district governing boards to raise their primary property taxes every year to pay for increased expenditures in certain areas, outside of voter-approved bonded indebtedness or budget and tax overrides.

In this case, the tax increase is to fund “adjacent ways,” which are school construction projects that lie next to a public right-of-way. For example, new bus bays, new fire lanes, new sidewalks, and a crosswalk with a H.A.W.K. lighted system will all be installed by PUHSD in the next fiscal year using the funds from the tax levy.