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Show Citizens Asked To Check School Budgets Iron County schools In 1967 accounted for $1,608,353, or I3rr of all property taxes charged in the county. Total property taxes charged by all government units, school, cities, cit-ies, county and towns, and special districts amounted to a whopping $2,215,851. These! figures were released today by the Utah Taxpayers Association, Asso-ciation, a non-profit, government-spending watchdog organization, or-ganization, j "The school property tax bite for the whole state last year was $884,383,869, or 64 of the $131,868,556 total," the Utah Taxpayers Association claimed. They said, "That since 1960, while pupils in av-I av-I erage daily attendance have j increased 28, from 216,317 to 277,590, school property taxes have jumped 46, from $57,-793,140 $57,-793,140 to $84,383,869. Other Bchool taxes have also al-so shot up in the period be-' tween 1960 and 1967. Individual Individ-ual Income tax collections have skyrocketed 229, from $12,219,103, to $40,197,094. Corporate Cor-porate Income taxes jumped 107, from $5,312,260 to $10,-995.658. $10,-995.658. In addition to property proper-ty taxes, individual and corporate cor-porate income taxes, schools spend part of the sales and cigarette tax revenues. The association claimed that "Skyrocketing school taxes tax-es can only be controlled by taxpayers exercising their responsibilities re-sponsibilities and taking an active part In the budget-making process." "June is when school public budget hearings are advertised and held. This is when taxpayers must appear ap-pear to ask questions and protest pro-test and this is the only way to check spiraling school spending and crippling taxation." |