How It Works: Local School Funding
and how property tax increases factor in
A community briefing for the Board of Education · September 2026
Here’s a common question from community members
“My property taxes went up, doesn’t the school district have more money?”
Let’s break down how local school funding works in Colorado
THE SHORT ANSWER
You pay more. The state pays less.
Colorado guarantees each district a funding total. Local property tax fills it first — then the state pays only the rest. Raise local taxes, and the state simply fills less.
TOTAL the state guarantees — the same either way
STATE
Local
When property taxes are LOWER
State
LOCAL
When property taxes are HIGHER
property taxes rise
Local ▲ State ▼
Same total, either way. A bigger property-tax bill doesn't grow the budget — it just means the state sends less. That's why rising taxes haven't given the district more to spend.
Source: Colorado School Finance Act. The next slide shows how this played out in Woodland Park.
WHERE OUR FUNDING COMES FROM
The state used to fund most of our budget. Now local taxpayers do.
Total Program funding comes from two shares — local property tax and the state's contribution. In seven years the mix flipped, because Colorado's formula counts local dollars first and pays only the remainder.
FY2020
37%
63%
FY2027
63%
37%
Local — your property tax
State's share
State's share
63% → 37%
~76¢ less
from the state for every $1 more you pay locally
Total Program funding shares, FY2020 vs FY2027. Source: WPSD RE-2 CFO briefing. FY2020 & FY2027 on CDE's school-finance basis (apples-to-apples).
WHAT THAT MEANS FOR THE BUDGET
More collected locally. Less to actually spend.
Here are the dollars behind the flip. Local collections rose, the state's contribution fell by about three-quarters as much, and inflation did the rest — so a bigger tax bill did not become a bigger budget.
+$6.05M
Property tax collected
the local bucket grew
−$4.61M
State share to the district
the state bucket shrank
+$0.17M
Specific ownership tax
vehicle registration
‒19.5%
real purchasing power vs. 2020.
The district buys about a fifth less than it could seven years ago. Every rise since then in salaries, benefits, utilities, transportation, athletics and mandated services has come out of a budget that grew at well under half the rate of prices — while the voter-approved override has stayed flat at $1.1M for 20+ years.
FY2020 & FY2027 on CDE's school-finance basis (apples-to-apples); state fell ~76¢ per $1 more in property tax. Source: WPSD RE-2 CFO briefing.
WHERE WE RANK IN THE REGION
Dead last on local school funding.
Voter-approved incremental local support per student — the seven districts of El Paso & Teller counties. Woodland Park (highlighted) is at the bottom.
Manitou Springs D-14
$4,047
Colorado Springs D-11
$3,451
Cheyenne Mountain D-12
$2,758
Cripple Creek-Victor RE-1
$2,240
Academy D-20
$1,095
Lewis-Palmer D-38
$659
WOODLAND PARK RE-2
$652 (Mill Levy Override)
$1,461
per student BELOW the 7-district average
$652 us vs $2,113 avg (enrollment weighted)
6.2× — Manitou raises six times more per student
Voter‑approved override collections ÷ funded pupil count, FY2026‑27, for the seven El Paso & Teller county districts. Source: Colorado Dept. of Education (School Finance).
AND ON BUILDINGS
Almost every neighbor invests more in facilities.
Voter-approved facilities bonds by district ($M). Woodland Park (highlighted) issued a $10.1M Certificate of Participation (COP) but hasn’t passed a facilities bond since 2003.
Academy D-20
$228.0M
Manitou Springs D-14
$43.0M
Cheyenne Mountain D-12
$35.0M
Lewis-Palmer D-38
$20.1M
WOODLAND PARK RE-2
$10.1M (COP)
Cripple Creek-Victor RE-1
$0.5M
23 years
since WP has approved a voter-approved facilities bond (2003)
Voter‑approved general‑obligation facilities bonds, as authorized, per CDE District Bonded Indebtedness report, FY2024‑25 (normalized to $M). Woodland Park's ~$10.1M is a Certificate of Participation (2003 bond, refinanced), not a current voter bond. Cripple Creek is casino/sales‑tax funded.
$7.62M still owed today — balance on a retired bond (Certificate of Participation)
WHY CRIPPLE CREEK IS AN OUTLIER
Where Cripple Creek's local revenue comes from
Its high per-student standing rests on a casino-driven property tax base — plus a small sales & use tax. General Fund local revenue, FY2024-25 district budget.
81%
9%
7%
Property tax
$4.81M · 81%
Specific ownership tax
$0.56M · 9%
Sales & use tax
$0.42M · 7%
Other local
$0.13M · 2%
Sources: Cripple Creek-Victor RE-1 Adopted Budget FY2024-25 (General Fund revenue detail); CDE Financial Transparency.
WHY WE'RE STRETCHED
A lost tax… and a building debt that stayed
The City's dedicated sales tax was created to pay the district's building debt so that property taxes could be held 6.725 mills lower. It was repealed – the debt was not.
THE SALES TAX
$2.72M / yr
repealed to $0
About $8.17M forgone through FY2027 — and with it, the source that kept property taxes for school funding down.
THE BUILDING DEBT (COP)
$7.62M still owed
~$725K a year
through November 2036 — the payment the repealed tax used to cover, now competing with classrooms.
The link: The sales tax was a creative solution in place of a property tax increase. Repeal removed that offset — the debt remains. Payment of the COP is now coming directly out of per pupil funding.
Sources: WPSD RE-2 CFO briefing; Exhibit C, Base Rentals Schedule of the closing transcript (as of the May 15, 2026 payment).
LOCAL FUNDING TOOLS
Three ways communities can fund local schools
Colorado gives communities a few options to raise local funding for schools — each pays for different things and works differently.
1
Mill Levy Override
OPERATING · ONGOING
PAYS FOR
Day-to-day operations — teachers, programs, athletics, transportation.
HOW IT WORKS
Adds property-tax mills; ongoing, and stays local.
In Woodland Park: $652 / student — set in 2003; last of seven regional districts.
2
Bond
CAPITAL · ONE-TIME PROJECTS
PAYS FOR
Buildings and major projects — construction, renovation/improvement, safety.
HOW IT WORKS
Voter-approved borrowing, repaid by a dedicated mill.
In Woodland Park: Last passed in 2003; neighbors have passed $20M–$228M since.
3
Local Sales Tax
FLEXIBLE · ONGOING
PAYS FOR
Flexible — operations, teacher pay, programs, and/or capital and debt.
HOW IT WORKS
A city sales tax approved by voters — visitors help pay, too.
In Woodland Park: Prior tax covered the COP and operating costs.
Source: Colorado school finance (mill levy overrides & bonds under TABOR); municipal sales-tax option. Woodland Park figures per the CFO briefing.
WOODLAND PARK — LOCAL REVENUE MIX
Then, now, and with 0.25%
Local revenue only — property tax (incl. override) + specific-ownership tax + the dedicated sales tax. Sales tax carried ~24% of local funding before repeal; it's now zero, and the 0.25% would restore only ~4–5%.
Before repeal at 1.09%
the sales-tax years
69%
7%
24%
$2.72M sales tax
Today
FY2027, no sales tax
94%
6%
$0 sales tax
With 0.25% sales tax
FY2027
90%
~$725K sales tax (est.)
4.5%
Property tax (incl. override)
Specific ownership tax
Sales tax
Property/specific-ownership from the WPSD CFO briefing. Sales tax: four-year average ~$2.72M. Sales tax based on proposed 0.25% ordinance covering COP.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Property taxes rose. Our schools fell behind.
1
The tax bill went up — property taxes have increased dramatically since 2020
2
The budget didn't follow — the state's share fell from 63% to 37%, and inflation leaves the district buying 19.5% less than in 2020.
3
We ask the least in the region — $652 per student — dead last of seven, $1,461 below average.
Sources: WPSD RE-2 Office of the CFO briefing (Aug. 27, 2026); CDE Public School Finance & FY24-25 Bonded Debt Reports; CDE SchoolView; district enrollment records. FY2020 & FY2027 on CDE's school-finance basis (apples-to-apples).
4
The fix is local — with the state's share shrinking, the district has to raise more locally