Chandler Schools unsure how it'll address new $14M property tax debt

​Hundreds of thousands of residential Maricopa County properties had to be revalued and hundreds of entities must pay back property tax dollars as a result of the recent upholding of a class-action lawsuit.

The Chandler Unified School District is one of those entities and will have to refund taxpayers an estimated nearly $14 million.

The lawsuit — Qasimyar v. Maricopa County — was filed by a resident challenging the way the county calculated how it charged homeowners for property taxes.

The Arizona Court of Appeals recently upheld the ruling that Maricopa County overtaxed many property owners from 2015 to 2023.

As a result, county taxing authorities — including CUSD — must refund tax revenue previously received or budgeted funds because of excessive property valuations.

CUSD spokesperson Stephanie Ingersoll told Independent Newsmedia the district plans to address the new debt, but no one with the district is certain yet exactly how that will be done.

“Since we are an entity relying on property taxes, the judgment impacts us,” Ingersoll said in a statement. “However, it will not impact our budget capacity. CUSD will follow the county’s directions and next steps, once established.”

The news comes as CUSD is about to vote on a $410 million fiscal 2025 budget, down more than $40 million from the recently completed year. The Governing Board is about to ask voters for a $487 million bond and are contemplating a 2025 override election.

Board member Kurt Rohrs points out those debts would add to about $400 million the district owed, as of the end of fiscal 2023.

Maricopa County school districts are impacted far more than municipalities or other taxing entities by the lawsuit — and Chandler Unified is the largest district in the county, by enrollment.

Mesa Unified, perhaps the second-largest school district, is on hook for about $11.2 million. Higley Unified of Gilbert, a far smaller district than CUSD, will owe about $3.4 million.

Conversely, the city of Chandler only owes about $2 million. The city has a $1.629 billion budget set for the year ahead.

We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments on this topic.  Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org . Email Jason W. Brooks at jbrooks@iniusa.org .