As the community and school board in Monticello continue to decide what the future of their school buildings looks like, one thing continues to be a point of emphasis in the community: their low tax rate.

Superintendent of Monticello Schools, Dr. Vic Zimmerman indicates, they have one of the areas lowest tax rates. He says when you look across the Piatt, Macon and Champaign County area, they are significantly lower than a handful of others.

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In Monticello, the districts benefit from the Corporate Property Replacement Tax, or CPPRT, and the Superintendent recognizes that fact, but he doesn't discount the work the school board has done to maintain it's low level.

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If the district was to raise their property tax 65-cents, that would be around $1.2-million dollars in revenue. He indicates that combined with the fact their middle school is nearly paid off would be plenty of money to fund a new school building in Monticello.

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Voters in Monticello last November rejected a proposal for a new high school after months of community engagement by the district. Now the district is all but back to the drawing board to try and find out why the referendum failed and what the future of the buildings should be.

Meanwhile, in the same voting cycle, voters approved a one-cent sales tax that can only go towards Piatt County school facilities.