Douglas County School District Mill Levy Override

Douglas County School District RE-1, which lies in Douglas and Elbert counties, proposes to raise property taxes by $54 million for collection in 2027. In each later year the new levy would raise "WHATEVER AMOUNTS ARE RAISED BY THE IMPOSITION OF A MILL LEVY WHICH, WHEN COMBINED WITH PRIOR VOTER APPROVED OVERRIDE QUESTIONS, SHALL PRODUCE REVENUE NOT TO EXCEED THE LIMIT ESTABLISHED FOR THE DISTRICT BY SECTION 22-54-108(3)(B) (VI), C.R.S." The question sets no end date. The revenue and its investment earnings would be a voter-approved revenue change under the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights and any other law; the district's expenditures would be subject to an annual independent audit posted on its website and oversight by a citizens' committee.

The board adopted the question on Aug. 25, 2026. Its election and compensation resolutions of that day both describe the increase as reaching "the maximum amount authorized" under that section. The question sets the limit as a ceiling, so the board may levy less in a given year.

The district's override website says it is authorized to collect $139,713,000 of override revenue, that its cap based on fiscal year 2026 total program would be $194 million, and that this leaves capacity of approximately $54 million. District staff, in a July 25, 2026, paper for the board's retreat, described this form of question as permanently raising the district's maximum override "from 25% to 28% of the Total Program under the School Finance Act" and keeping it there.

The district's website says that because past overrides "have been fixed dollar amounts, over time, as more homes are built and the population grows in Douglas County, the cost per household decreases," and that the district's overall tax rate fell from 22.5 mills in 2013 to 18.1 mills. It says the new override "would be indexed," and describes an indexed override this way: "Dollar amount generally increases by inflation each year to hold purchasing power. Cost generally remains the same per household over time."

Staff offered the board three versions of the question in July. The structure the board adopted is the first, which staff said reads "very much like a standard fixed-dollar increase" and "fully optimizes and secures our maximum potential revenue." Staff listed one weakness: "Douglas County residents have never voted on this type of question." The second version, a fixed $54 million that also raised the ceiling to 28%, drew five listed weaknesses, the first that district revenue "is unable to scale with population growth." The district's Fiscal Oversight Committee, a citizen panel, told the board in a memo reviewed at the same retreat that converting the existing fixed-dollar overrides into fixed mills was its "primary, unanimous recommendation." Members were divided on also asking for the $54 million package. Staff drafted that conversion as the third version, and the board did not adopt it.

The question would authorize the money for "GENERAL FUND PURPOSES INCLUDING" teacher and staff pay "MORE COMPETITIVE WITH NEIGHBORING DISTRICTS," rising school security costs, shorter student waitlists for career and technical education and restored programs such as elementary instrumental music. Staff's July paper credits that phrase with "the necessary operational flexibility" as the program grows past $54 million. The district's plan divides the first $54 million this way: $21.4 million for a 4% raise for teachers and staff, $13 million (about 24%, based on the projected 2026–27 funded pupil count excluding HOPE Online) for district-authorized charter schools, $5.1 million for in-district programs for students with exceptional needs, $4.2 million for career and technical education, $3.8 million for student programming including $2 million for elementary music, $3.3 million for math and reading curricula, $2 million for security and $1.2 million for athletics and activities. The plan says the dollar amounts will adjust as the override amount changes over time.

If voters approve, the board’s Aug. 25 compensation resolution increases licensed employees’ pay by 4% under the attached schedules and regular classified, administrative, and professional/technical employees’ pay by 4%; post-retirement 110 and 140 employees receive 2%, and substitute teacher rates increase by $10 per full day/half day across assignments. The increases are retroactive to July 1, 2026, and district staff told the board a lump-sum retroactive payment would come in the Jan. 27 payroll.

The district says it receives $2,000 less per student than Cherry Creek School District and Littleton Public Schools, "equivalent to an annual gap of $130 million," and that it remains 7% below the average starting teacher salary in the Denver metro area. Its 2026-2027 adopted budget draws $22.6 million from general fund reserves, and staff told the board in August that at least $15 million must be cut for 2027-2028.

Voters rejected the district's $60 million override in November 2022, with 50.67% voting no, according to Douglas County's official results. They approved a $66 million override in November 2023 with 52.39% voting yes.