09/11/2026
HAPPY FRIDAY WARRIORS!
I wanted to provide an update for our Eminence Community on our “proposed” tax rate for this year. I’ll skip to the main point, but provide some supporting information to make sure that everyone understands the legal process we have to follow. The main thing is that we will be proposing to keep the same tax rate as last year at Tuesday’s Board Meeting. Our rate last year was 68.2 and I’ll be recommending to the Board that we keep the rate at 68.2 for this year.
To let you see into the process for establishing the tax rate, I want to first explain the funding mechanisms for schools in Kentucky. Schools are primarily funded through two sources: The Average Daily Attendance of our Student Enrollment and on locally sourced taxes. The vast majority of the budget comes from student enrollment/attendance. The easiest way to have more money is to have more students and then to have them be at school every day. In Kentucky, when a student stays home, the school receives no funding for that day.
Since Eminence Schools starts school later in August than most districts, we have to create a “proposed” tax rate prior to the beginning of the school year. The rate that was proposed at the August meeting was only approximately 1 Cent higher than last years and was simply a proposal based on last year’s Average Daily Attendance and our budgetary needs for this school year. However, once school began, we soon realized our actual enrollment numbers for this year were higher than last years. With the increased enrollment, of approximately 20 students, we are now able to keep the tax rate the same as last year.
I also want to clear up how funding works for all students enrolled in Eminence, including out-of-district students.
One of the financial advantages Eminence Independent Schools has experienced in recent years comes from our decision to welcome students who live outside the Eminence Independent School District.
In Kentucky, public schools receive state funding through a formula called SEEK, which stands for Support Education Excellence in Kentucky. In simple terms, SEEK is the primary way the Commonwealth provides funding to school districts based largely on the students they educate. Kentucky law allows an approved nonresident student attending Eminence to be counted in Eminence's attendance for SEEK funding purposes.
For the 2026–27 school year, the SEEK guaranteed base is $4,626 per pupil. That is the starting point in the formula—not necessarily the exact amount Eminence receives in additional state dollars for every student. The actual SEEK calculation is more complicated and can include additional funding based on factors such as special education, at-risk students, transportation and other student needs, while also taking local funding into account.
The important point for our community is this: when an out-of-district student chooses Eminence, that student can generate additional state funding for Eminence without adding another home or piece of property to the Eminence tax base.
That has become an important part of Eminence's financial strategy. As our enrollment of out-of-district students has increased, the state funding associated with educating those students has helped increase the resources available to the district. Instead of relying solely on additional local property-tax revenue to fund our schools, we have been able to bring additional state education dollars into our district by serving more students.
That additional revenue is one of the reasons Eminence has been able to lower its local tax rate and now have a tax rate below Henry County Schools.
Think of it this way: Eminence has been able to grow the number of students we serve—and the state funding connected to those students—without growing the number of local taxpayers who have to support the district. That creates a larger funding base and allows the financial responsibility of operating a high-quality school system to rely less heavily on Eminence property owners.
Our willingness to accept out-of-district students therefore benefits Eminence in two important ways. It gives more families the opportunity to choose Eminence Schools, and it brings additional state education funding into our district that helps us maintain strong programs while reducing the tax burden on our local community.
Simply stated: More students choosing Eminence means more state education dollars coming to Eminence. Those additional dollars have helped us invest in students while also allowing us to lower the tax rate for our local taxpayers. For example our tax rate in the 2019-2020 school year was 80.4 Cents, which means a rate reduction of over 12 Cents in the last 6 years.
Lastly, Eminence Schools has the second lowest tax rate in the OVEC region, trailing only Carroll County Schools. Please review the chart associated with this post for the exact amounts that it would cost to live in the various school districts.
The Eminence Community pays the second least amount in taxes for the area and is approximately 40 Cents cheaper than the other Independent District.
If you ever have any questions, never hesitate to reach out to our office.
I want to thank our Eminence Board Members for courageously saving our community money and special thanks to the Eminence Community for your constant support!
Go Warriors!
Dr. Buddy Berry
