Property taxes could be on the rise to help support the operations and maintenance of the school district in the coming year.

The Vicksburg Warren School Board met in the district administrative office boardroom for two and a half hours Wednesday evening to discuss finances, the state of the district, technology and other issues impacting students.

One of the first items on the agenda was the board’s budget, presented by finance director Shaquita Burke. The issue of ad valorem taxes came up during that discussion.

Currently, the school district is receiving 53.58 mills in taxes. Legally the district can receive up to 55 mills in taxes without going to a citizen vote, school officials said.

“The board wanted to know how our (budget) request was going to affect property taxes. I could not give then that answer because I had not met with Mr. (county administrator John) Smith,” Burke said.

The board voted in favor of the possibility that ad valorem taxes could go up depending on the district’s needs and an assessment of motor vehicles, personal property and mobile homes by Smith.

Board member Jim Sturgis Jr. was the only board member to vote against the possibility of higher taxes.

“We’ve had three tax increases in the last two years and I voted against all of them,” Sturgis said. “We’ve gone from 46 mils to 53 mills at the present time.”

Burke said it is not the district that asked for a tax increase but the county.

“We don’t make determination on whether or not there’s going to be a change in property taxes. That is the county’s job,” she said, but she does work with Smith to let him know the needs of the school district.

Smith said there isn’t much he can say about the possibility of an increase in mills because he has not received a formal request from the school district yet.

“They send a order to the board on how much is their cash needs,” Smith said.

Burke said that request wouldn’t be submitted until she works through the budget and identifies the needs of the district.

The change in taxes depends on what the district determines they need and what information is received from the assessment, and that information is not available at this time.

“I cannot assess the districts needs until I finalize our budget and see what our amount request will be from the county. Then Mr. Smith can factor in what the city has requested, what the county has requested and what the school district has requested, plus any credits or deductions that has come down from the state,” Burke said.

The board will vote on its budget at a special called meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 10, at 5 p.m. in the boardroom at the school district’s administrative offices, 1500 Mission 66.