State of Delaware
Equalization Committee
FISCAL YEAR 2024
RECOMMENDATIONS
Per 14 Del. C. §1707(i)
April 2023
Equalization Committee Membership:
Laura V. Sturgeon, Senator
Kimberly Williams, Representative
Dan Shelton, Superintendent, Christina School District
Steven Lucas, Superintendent, Lake Forest School District
Shawn Larrimore, Superintendent, Laurel School District
Sara Croce, Business Manager, Milford School District
Jill Floore, Business Manager, Brandywine School District
Wali Rushdan, State Board of Education
Taylor Hawk, Delaware State Education Association
Alonna Berry, Office of the Governor
Kiley Thompson, Controller General’s Office
Nicholas Konzelman, Office of Management and Budget
Arsene Aka, Department of Finance
Staff to Committee (Department of Education)
Kim Klein, Associate Secretary, Operations Support
Jennifer Carlson, Director of Finance
Sandra Jani, Education Associate
Other Participants
Ed Ratledge, University of Delaware
Monica Moriak
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Equalization Committee continues to review issues dealing with the equitable funding of
education within the State, specifically the Equalization formula. The purpose of the Equalization
formula is to allocate state resources to districts inversely on their ability to raise revenues through
their local property tax base. This allocation is an attempt to ensure that each district has
substantially the same level of resources with which to educate each student.
The committee continues to find that a major issue in attempting to equalize school finances is the
inconsistencies in current assessment practices related to property valuation. As the committee
has tried over time to correct misalignment of equalization dollars due to the lack of reassessment,
the formula has grown more and more unreliable. The Equalization formula relies on data from
property assessments, which must be made current for the formula to adequately serve its purpose.
In 2020, a ruling by the Delaware Chancery Court found that the property taxing systems in each
of the State’s three counties to be unconstitutional and not in keeping with Delaware law. The
committee recognizes the upcoming county reassessments that are a result of the recent ruling will
resolve the reassessment issue short-term once implemented. Based on the status of the county
reassessments the expected impact to the Equalization formula will be FY 2026.
After years of discussions on the challenges of this formula and the lack of solid options that do
not create hardships for districts, the Committee is recommending holding the Fiscal Year 2024
per unit equalization values consistent with Fiscal Year 2009 values.
BACKGROUND
The last major revision of the equalization formula occurred in 1984. One of the significant
changes made was instituting a methodology for establishing a district’s wealth that required an
assessment-to-sales price study of real estate in each district. This study was necessitated by the
fact that each county has a different assessment policy. The first such study in March 1989 would
have resulted in a significant decrease in funding among the New Castle County school districts
with significant increases to those in Kent and Sussex counties had the formula remained intact.
That situation led to the establishment of the Equalization Policy Committee by the Governor in
1989. Subsequent legislation called for a committee to be appointed by the Secretary of Education
to review the formula annually and make recommendations as needed. Since that time the
Equalization Committee has made numerous modifications and adjustments to the formula to
attempt to minimize losses, control gains and ensure equity statewide.
In March 2023, the Equalization Committee was provided with the most recent Assessment-to-
Sales Ratio Study prepared by the University of Delaware and data showing the impact of updating
the formula. The committee determined that the formula was still not having the desired impact.
This report will review the current equalization formula, including impacts by district, and
recommendations for Fiscal Year 2024 Equalization funding.
CONCERNS WITH THE EXISTING FINANCE SYSTEM
Overview
There are many facts and published reports, which indicate that Delaware has a sound education
financing system in place. Delaware provides state funding to cover approximately two-thirds of
the total cost of public education, one of the highest proportions of state funding in the nation.
Since Fiscal Year 1984, equalization funding has increased from $7.7 M or 3.1% of the education
budget to $104.0 M or 5.7% of the education budget in FY 2023 (excluding the appropriated
amount for the Delaware Advisory Council on Career and Technical Education).
Despite the many positive aspects of Delaware’s funding system, several areas need improvement.
There is still a sizable difference in the ability of districts to raise funds to enhance their educational
programs to address student and school accountability measures and many funding areas still
create an inequitable burden on poorer districts. In the past, the Equalization Committee has
recommended a series of changes to address some of the deficiencies. However, over time, these
adjustments are just not accomplishing their intended goals as the formula continues to produce
volatile results in response to the implementation of these changes.
Reassessment
It is apparent to the Committee that a major flaw with the existing Equalization formula is not so
much the formula but rather the data. For many years, the Committee has struggled with the effects
of shifts in the relative wealth of districts as determined by the annual revisions to the assessment-
to-sales ratios. Given the different assessment policies in each county, these ratios are used to
estimate the market value of property in each district in order to determine relative wealth. Refer
to Table 1 to see the impact of current year adjustments. More important than the shift in wealth
is the fact that this can best be described as a shift in a district’s paper wealth. While the market
value of property has been changing in the districts, the lack of a uniform statewide rolling
reassessment policy means that the district’s tax base (i.e. assessed value) has not changed
consistent with the change in its market value of real estate.
As the market value of property in a district (as determined by the assessment-to-sales price study)
increases, it is deemed to be wealthier and is expected to generate more revenues from local taxes
thereby entitling it to less equalization funding. However, since there is no consistent reassessment
practice in place, the district’s tax base is not increasing in proportion to its market value. Refer
to Table 2 for information on the changes in assessed value within each district. So, while a district
loses equalization funding, the funding is not replaced by an increase in its tax base. It can only
be replaced by a change in the tax rate through referendum. This is an unintended consequence of
the formula and has placed a heavy burden on many local districts. It will likely cause even greater
problems if the market value of real estate continues to change at current rates. To further
compound the problem, the effect of these changes is to lower a district’s effort which may further
reduce what they are eligible to receive in equalization funding.
For many years the recommendation of the Committee has been for the State to move forward
with recommendations outlined in the Reassessment Report dated November 26, 2008. New
Castle County property has not been reassessed since 1983; Kent County property has not been
reassessed since 1986; and Sussex County property has not been reassessed since 1974. The
completion of the upcoming county reassessments will provide more reliable data on a district’s
wealth, ensure equity among taxpayers, and allow for the equalization model to function as
intended. Reassessments must occur on a regular basis to prevent the current volatility in
the equalization formula and distribution.
Support Beyond Full Effort
The equalization formula is intended to provide equity among districts to a point. Beyond that
point, districts earn what they can generate from their local tax bases without any additional state
support. In the current formula, this point is referred to as the authorized amount and is set at
$29,650. The underlying concept is that if a district levied the appropriate tax rate, it would receive
$29,650 through a combination of property taxes and state equalization funds. The state portion
of this amount varies based upon each district’s wealth. There are no additional state resources
made available to a district if they exceed this required level of taxation. As a result, property
wealthy districts have the ability to generate considerably more funds with small tax rate increases
than their less wealthy counterparts. This creates significant funding disparities as districts assess
higher tax rates. Refer to Table 3 for a comparison of per unit funding by district. The statewide
average per unit funding is $64,564 but the amounts range from $28,389 to $111,772. Fifteen
districts are below the statewide average, which suggests that they are among the poorest and that
those above the average have the greatest property wealth. While no district should be penalized
when its tax payers elect to provide additional support for education, the inability for poorer
districts to raise this level of revenue without astronomical tax rates will perpetuate this funding
disparity. Some form of equalization beyond the required level could help to minimize funding
disparities. In addition, the lack of equalization in the other tax areas further exacerbates the
problem of poorer districts that must enact significantly higher tax rates to meet their obligations
to students.
EQUALIZATION FORMULA REVISIONS
The implementation of the newest assessment-to-sales ratios this past year continues to result in
significant changes in the estimated market value of property within each district. See Table 1.
While these changes have an impact as to the relative wealth among districts, they have no bearing
on the amount of tax revenues collected by a district. The changes in the actual assessed value of
property in each district is a more critical factor in determining the actual tax collections because
it is against the assessment value that a district’s tax rate is applied to raise local taxes. See Table
2.
Other information that can be useful in comparing the relative financial status of each district is
presented in several attached tables. Table 3 shows the estimated total amount of current expense
and equalization funding available on a per unit basis for each district. Tables 4 and 5 show the
estimated Fiscal Year 2023 property tax using the FY 2024 assessment ratio for homes with market
values of $100,000 and $200,000. Table 4 is the current expense tax, which is for school purposes
such as local salary supplements and instructional supplies. Table 5 is the total tax bill, which in
addition to the current expense tax rate also includes tuition, match and debt service rates. Table
6 utilizes FY 2022 Report Card data and shows the per pupil expenditures from all funding sources,
exclusive of adult education programs, construction and debt service.
In a continuing attempt to dampen the effects of the volatile changes in a district’s wealth as a
result of the changing assessment-to-sales ratios, the Committee is maintaining the “smoothing”
of the ratios by averaging the ratios from the past three years analysis as provided in Table 7.
CONCLUSION
The Committee continues to express concerns about recommending the implementation of
artificial strategies that continue to erode the original purpose of the Equalization Formula. The
Committee strongly urges the Administration and General Assembly to take actions to address the
inherent challenges created by the current system, in order to provide equitable funding statewide.
The committee requests inquiry to produce effective legislative solutions to produce the sales data
while the committee is waiting for reassessment by the county. The Committee’s
recommendations include the following:
1. Short Term: Continue to freeze the Equalization formula at Fiscal Year 2009 levels, given
the limited amount of time for school districts to prepare for the changes that would result
from unfreezing the formula. The impact of continuing to freeze the formula through Fiscal
Year 2024 is that some school districts that should be receiving greater levels of
Equalization funding via an unfrozen formula will continue to forgo this additional
revenue, and school districts that should be receiving less Equalization funding will
continue to receive greater levels of State support than they are otherwise entitled to
receive. Table 8 is a summary of these impacts to the district formula values.
2. Long Term: Reassess property statewide every five years, including unassessed real
property, and investigate how to promulgate rules and regulations to require mandatory
reporting of actual sales value publicly. The Committee uniformly agrees the impact of a
lack of property reassessment and throughout the State, and its impact on Equalization, is
as such: as a school district’s market value of property increases the Equalization formula
recognizes this as an indication that a particular school district is wealthier and is expected
to generate additional local property tax revenue thereby decreasing State Equalization
funding. However, given a lack of reassessment practices, property assessments are not
increasing in proportion to market value and school districts that lose Equalization funding
do not have the ability to offset the loss via current expense taxes without sizable property
tax increase.
FY 2023 FY 2023 FY 2024
District Assessed Value Adj Ratio Old Full Value Adj Ratio New Full Value % Change
Appoquinimink $2,615,848,503 0.262 $9,984,154,592 0.245 $10,676,932,665 6.9%
Brandywine $3,445,863,188 0.260 $13,253,319,954 0.246 $14,007,573,935 5.7%
Christina $5,597,445,044 0.275 $20,354,345,615 0.260 $21,528,634,785 5.8%
Colonial $3,136,236,771 0.271 $11,572,829,413 0.257 $12,203,255,918 5.4%
Red Clay $5,469,521,224 0.264 $20,717,883,424 0.247 $22,143,810,623 6.9%
NCC Total $20,381,239,800 $75,882,532,998 $80,560,207,927 6.2%
NCCDIST $17,649,066,227 $65,898,378,406 $69,883,275,261 6.0%
Caesar Rodney $996,961,600 0.194 $5,138,977,320 0.194 $5,138,977,320 0.0%
Capital $1,375,168,300 0.205 $6,708,138,049 0.214 $6,426,020,093 -4.2%
Lake Forest $558,137,200 0.186 $3,000,737,634 0.187 $2,984,690,909 -0.5%
Milford Total $472,203,343 $3,816,991,695 $3,989,549,315 4.5%
KC $289,810,900 0.196 $1,478,627,041 0.204 $1,420,641,667 -3.9%
SC $182,392,443 0.078 $2,338,364,654 0.071 $2,568,907,648 9.9%
Smyrna Total $858,114,170 $4,432,086,911 $4,409,914,332 -0.5%
NCC $116,325,070 0.250 $465,300,280 0.230 $505,761,174 8.7%
KC $741,789,100 0.187 $3,966,786,631 0.190 $3,904,153,158 -1.6%
TOTAL $4,000,629,200 $23,096,931,608 $22,949,151,968 -0.6%
Cape Henlopen $1,459,158,027 0.070 $20,845,114,671 0.064 $22,799,344,172 9.4%
Delmar $61,685,749 0.080 $771,071,863 0.075 $822,476,653 6.7%
Indian River $1,851,008,568 0.076 $24,355,375,895 0.070 $26,442,979,543 8.6%
Laurel $132,895,096 0.079 $1,682,216,405 0.073 $1,820,480,767 8.2%
Seaford $222,556,755 0.083 $2,681,406,687 0.077 $2,890,347,468 7.8%
Woodbridge $177,931,458 $2,016,919,125 $2,166,313,186 7.4%
KC $38,762,100 0.185 $209,524,865 0.188 $206,181,383 -1.6%
SC $139,169,358 0.077 $1,807,394,260 0.071 $1,960,131,803 8.5%
TOTAL $4,048,865,996 $52,352,104,645 $56,941,941,789 8.8%
Statewide $28,430,734,996 $151,331,569,251 $160,451,301,684 6.0%
Table 1. Assessment - Sales Ratios
Table 2. Assessed Value Comparison
Assessed Value Assessed Value
District 2021-22 2022-23 % Change
Appoquinimink $2,518,920,495 $2,615,848,503 3.8%
Brandywine $3,429,497,562 $3,445,863,188 0.5%
Christina $5,558,039,604 $5,597,445,044 0.7%
Colonial $3,075,593,875 $3,136,236,771 2.0%
Red Clay $5,356,261,653 $5,469,521,224 2.1%
NCC Total $20,054,638,259 $20,381,239,800 1.6%
NCCDIST $17,419,392,694 $17,649,066,227 1.3%
Caesar Rodney $964,069,100 $996,961,600 3.4%
Capital $1,362,407,400 $1,375,168,300 0.9%
Lake Forest $545,470,200 $558,137,200 2.3%
Milford Total $458,631,643 $472,203,343 3.0%
KC $282,512,100 $289,810,900 2.6%
SC $176,119,543 $182,392,443 3.6%
Smyrna Total $831,533,970 $858,114,170 3.2%
NCC $116,325,070 $116,325,070 0.0%
KC $715,208,900 $741,789,100 3.7%
TOTAL $3,908,238,000 $4,000,629,200 2.4%
Cape Henlopen $1,395,151,127 $1,459,158,027 4.6%
Delmar $60,976,249 $61,685,749 1.2%
Indian River $1,784,481,401 $1,851,008,568 3.7%
Laurel $131,030,529 $132,895,096 1.4%
Seaford $219,621,805 $222,556,755 1.3%
Woodbridge $174,084,393 $177,931,458 2.2%
KC $38,570,300 $38,762,100 0.5%
SC $135,514,093 $139,169,358 2.7%
TOTAL $3,902,894,747 $4,048,865,996 3.7%
Statewide $27,865,771,006 $28,430,734,996 2.0%
NCC Vo-Tech $19,938,313,189 $20,264,914,730 1.6%
Polytech $4,024,563,070 $4,116,954,270 2.3%
NCC $116,325,070 $116,325,070 0.0%
KC $3,908,238,000 $4,000,629,200 2.4%
Sussex Tech $3,902,894,747 $4,048,865,996 3.7%
Table 3. Estimated Current Expense and Equalization Funding
District
Estimated Current Expense
Revenue
Equalization * Total Funds
September 2022
Unit Count
Funds Per Unit
Appoquinimink $35,784,808 $15,091,972 $50,876,780 967.31 $52,596
NCCDIST $82,597,630 $82,597,630 4,065.31
Brandywine $47,242,784 $5,379,203 $52,621,987 832.05 $63,244
Christina $94,708,770 $8,620,552 $103,329,322 1,290.18 $80,089
Colonial $35,063,127 $4,896,685 $39,959,812 753.24 $53,051
Red Clay $60,602,295 $7,738,427 $68,340,722 1,189.84 $57,437
New Castle County Total $355,999,414 $397,726,253 5,032.62
Caesar Rodney $9,639,423 $12,138,247 $21,777,670 613.49 $35,498
Capital $16,364,503 $8,907,481 $25,271,984 560.32 $45,103
Lake Forest $5,392,488 $5,512,794 $10,905,282 265.60 $41,059
Milford $9,171,794 $5,649,856 $14,821,650 323.57 $45,807
KC $3,300,946 $3,300,946
SC $5,870,848 $5,870,848
Smyrna $10,991,256 $9,711,341 $20,702,597 488.99 $42,337
NCC $1,219,668 $1,219,668
KC $9,771,588 $9,771,588
Kent County Total $51,559,464 $93,479,183 2,251.97
Cape Henlopen $29,153,977 $702,761 $29,856,738 532.83 $56,034
Delmar $1,188,400 $1,830,996 $3,019,396 88.81 $33,998
Indian River $43,860,902 $1,270,838 $45,131,740 850.52 $53,064
Laurel $2,171,327 $3,033,544 $5,204,871 183.34 $28,389
Seaford $6,098,055 $4,513,075 $10,611,130 265.96 $39,897
Woodbridge $3,758,391 $3,236,783 $6,995,174 193.31 $36,186
KC $385,759 $385,759
SC $3,372,632 $3,372,632
Sussex County Total $86,231,051 $100,819,049 2,114.77
Regular and Special Total $493,789,929 $592,024,485 9,399.36
NCC Vo-Tech $30,397,372 $2,837,351 $33,234,723 380.24 $87,405
Polytech $5,562,602 $1,794,601 $7,357,203 92.51 $79,529
NCC $125,747 $125,747
KC $5,436,855 $5,436,855
Sussex Tech $11,134,381 $160,164 $11,294,545 101.05 $111,772
Vo-Tech Total $47,094,355 $47,094,355 573.80
Statewide $540,884,284 $103,026,671 $643,910,955 9,973.16 $64,564
* Reflects FY23 actual earned at FROZEN rate
Table 4. Current Expense School Property Taxes
Current Expense
FY 2024 Tax Rate Taxes On Home
Assessment Per $100 Valued at
District County Ratio Assessed Value $100,000 $200,000
Appoquinimink N 0.217 1.3680 $296.86 $593.71
Brandywine* N 0.218 1.3710 $298.88 $597.76
Christina* N 0.227 1.6920 $384.08 $768.17
Colonial* N 0.226 1.1180 $252.67 $505.34
Red Clay* N 0.220 1.1080 $243.76 $487.52
Caesar Rodney K 0.198 0.9500 $188.10 $376.20
Capital K 0.230 1.1900 $273.70 $547.40
Lake Forest K 0.194 0.9508 $184.46 $368.91
Milford K 0.219 1.1390 $249.44 $498.88
S 0.063 3.2188 $202.78 $405.57
Smyrna N 0.194 1.0485 $203.41 $406.82
K 0.201 1.3173 $264.78 $529.55
Cape Henlopen S 0.055 1.9980 $109.89 $219.78
Delmar S 0.068 1.8710 $127.23 $254.46
Indian River S 0.064 2.3500 $150.40 $300.80
Laurel S 0.068 1.5000 $102.00 $204.00
Seaford S 0.069 2.7400 $189.06 $378.12
Woodbridge K 0.196 0.9840 $192.86 $385.73
S 0.063 2.3790 $149.88 $299.75
NCC Vo-Tech N 0.250 0.1500 $37.50 $75.00
Polytech N 0.237 0.1081 $25.62 $51.24
K 0.183 0.1359 $24.87 $49.74
Sussex Tech S 0.070 0.2750 $19.25 $38.50
*Current Expense rate does not include the New Castle County Tax Rate.
Current Expense
Table 5. Total School Property Taxes
Total School
FY 2024 Property Tax Rate Taxes On Home
Assessment Per $100 Valued at
District County Ratio Assessed Value $100,000 $200,000
Appoquinimink
N 0.217 2.5833
$560.58 $1,121.15
Brandywine*
N 0.218 2.0705
$451.37 $902.74
Christina*
N 0.227 2.6630
$604.50 $1,209.00
Colonial*
N 0.226 1.7050
$385.33 $770.66
Red Clay*
N 0.220 1.8300
$402.60 $805.20
Caesar Rodney
K 0.198 1.8950
$375.21 $750.42
Capital
K 0.230 2.3891
$549.49 $1,098.99
Lake Forest
K 0.194 1.6122
$312.77 $625.53
Milford
K 0.219 1.6615
$363.87 $727.74
S 0.063 4.6957
$295.83 $591.66
Smyrna
N 0.194 1.6524
$320.57 $641.13
K 0.201 2.0766
$417.40 $834.79
Cape Henlopen
S 0.055 3.9722
$218.47 $436.94
Delmar
S 0.068 4.0453
$275.08 $550.16
Indian River
S 0.064 3.2829
$210.11 $420.21
Laurel
S 0.068 4.2478
$288.85 $577.70
Seaford
S 0.069 4.0923
$282.37 $564.74
Woodbridge
K 0.196 1.6800
$329.28 $658.56
S 0.063 4.5560
$287.03 $574.06
NCC Vo-Tech
N 0.250 0.1740
$43.50 $87.00
Polytech
N 0.237 0.1247
$29.55 $59.11
K 0.183 0.1569
$28.71 $57.43
Sussex Tech
S 0.070 0.3357
$23.50 $47.00
*Total School Property Tax rate does not include the New Castle County Tax Rate.
Total
District
Appoquinimink $15,692
Brandywine $20,281
Christina $22,100
Colonial $19,732
Red Clay $20,570
Caesar Rodney $14,327
Capital $16,629
Lake Forest $16,151
Milford $14,959
Smyrna $15,275
Cape Henlopen $16,936
Delmar $11,695
Indian River $16,659
Laurel $14,893
Seaford $18,024
Woodbridge $16,414
NCC Vo-Tech $19,803
Polytech $18,993
Sussex Tech $20,451
Source: 2022 Report Card: https://reportcard.doe.k12.de.us/index.html
Table 6. Expenditures Per Pupil - FY 2022
District average includes all schools within the district, and may include special schools or schools with special programs which may influence
the overall district average. District average spending does not include Statewide/Countywide schools which serve students across districts.
Several types of expenditures were excluded from the spending per student calculation since they are not directly associated with pre-
kindergarten through grade twelve learning, such as adult education. Other items are one-time in nature and may distort the data, such as
building acquisition.
FY 2024
District
Using Assessed Value
Appoquinimink $2,615,848,503
Brandywine $3,445,863,188
Christina $5,597,445,044
Colonial $3,136,236,771
Red Clay $5,469,521,224
NCC Total $20,381,239,800
NCCDIST $17,649,066,227
Caesar Rodney $996,961,600
Capital $1,375,168,300
Lake Forest $558,137,200
Milford Total $472,203,343
KC $289,810,900
SC $182,392,443
Smyrna Total $858,114,170
NCC $116,325,070
KC $741,789,100
KC TOTAL $4,000,629,200
Cape Henlopen $1,459,158,027
Delmar $61,685,749
Indian River $1,851,008,568
Laurel $132,895,096
Seaford $222,556,755
Woodbridge Total $177,931,458
KC $38,762,100
SC $139,169,358
SC TOTAL $4,048,865,996
Statewide $28,430,734,996
Table 7. Three Year Sales Ratio
Calculation
FY 2022 FY 2022
FY 2022
Adjusted
FY 2022 Adjusted FY 2023 FY 2023
FY 2023
Adjusted
FY 2023 Adjusted FY 2024 FY 2024
FY 2024
Adjusted
FY 2024 Adjusted
Adj Full
Value
Adj Full
Value
Actual Full
Value
Ratio Full Value Ratio Full Value Ratio Full Value Ratio Full Value Ratio Full Value Ratio Full Value
% Change % Change % Change
0.267 $9,797,185,404 0.274 $9,546,892,347 0.250 $10,463,394,012 0.262 $9,984,154,592 0.217 $12,054,601,396 0.245 $10,676,932,665 6.9% 7.9%
0.274 $12,576,143,022 0.277 $12,439,939,307 0.245 $14,064,747,706 0.260 $13,253,319,954 0.218 $15,806,711,872 0.246 $14,007,573,935 5.7% 7.7%
0.293 $19,103,908,000 0.293 $19,103,908,000 0.259 $21,611,756,927 0.275 $20,354,345,615 0.227 $24,658,348,211 0.260 $21,528,634,785 5.8% 7.2%
0.292 $10,740,536,887 0.290 $10,814,609,555 0.254 $12,347,388,862 0.271 $11,572,829,413 0.226 $13,877,153,854 0.257 $12,203,255,918 5.4% 7.2%
0.279 $19,604,018,724 0.282 $19,395,465,333 0.243 $22,508,317,794 0.264 $20,717,883,424 0.220 $24,861,460,109 0.247 $22,143,810,623 6.9% 7.2%
$71,821,792,037 $71,300,814,542 $80,995,605,301 $75,882,532,998 $91,258,275,442 $80,560,207,927 6.4%
$62,024,606,633 $61,753,922,195 $70,532,211,289 $65,898,378,406 $79,203,674,046 $69,883,275,261 6.7%
0.201 $4,960,007,960 0.202 $4,935,453,465 0.182 $5,477,810,989 0.194 $5,138,977,320 0.198 $5,035,159,596 0.194 $5,138,977,320 0.0% 2.0%
0.220 $6,250,765,000 0.210 $6,548,420,476 0.193 $7,125,224,352 0.205 $6,708,138,049 0.230 $5,978,992,609 0.214 $6,426,020,093 -4.2% -5.5%
0.194 $2,876,995,876 0.193 $2,891,902,591 0.174 $3,207,685,057 0.186 $3,000,737,634 0.194 $2,876,995,876 0.187 $2,984,690,909 -0.5% 1.5%
$3,711,876,028 $3,693,603,829 $4,152,573,768 $3,816,991,695 $4,218,455,586 $3,989,549,315 4.5% 3.3%
0.211 $1,373,511,374 0.201 $1,441,845,274 0.183 $1,583,666,120 0.196 $1,478,627,041 0.219 $1,323,337,443 0.204 $1,420,641,667 -3.9% 15.3%
0.078 $2,338,364,654 0.081 $2,251,758,556 0.071 $2,568,907,648 0.078 $2,338,364,654 0.063 $2,895,118,143 0.071 $2,568,907,648 9.9% 9.9%
$4,251,450,782 $4,246,347,313 $4,753,978,827 $4,432,086,911 $4,290,106,798 $4,409,914,332 -0.5% 4.4%
0.260 $447,404,115 0.263 $442,300,646 0.237 $490,823,080 0.250 $465,300,280 0.194 $599,613,763 0.230 $505,761,174 8.7% 9.7%
0.195 $3,804,046,667 0.195 $3,804,046,667 0.174 $4,263,155,747 0.187 $3,966,786,631 0.201 $3,690,493,035 0.190 $3,904,153,158 -1.6% 12.1%
0.206 $22,051,095,647 $22,315,727,674 0.195 $24,717,272,994 $23,096,931,608 0.218 $22,399,710,464 $22,949,151,968 -0.6% 3.5%
0.070 $20,845,114,671 0.072 $20,266,083,708 0.066 $22,108,454,955 0.070 $20,845,114,671 0.055 $26,530,145,945 0.064 $22,799,344,172 9.4% 6.1%
0.078 $790,842,936 0.080 $771,071,863 0.078 $790,842,936 0.080 $771,071,863 0.068 $907,143,368 0.075 $822,476,653 6.7% 0.0%
0.075 $24,680,114,240 0.080 $23,137,607,100 0.071 $26,070,543,211 0.076 $24,355,375,895 0.064 $28,922,008,875 0.070 $26,442,979,543 8.6% 5.6%
0.077 $1,725,910,338 0.081 $1,640,680,198 0.073 $1,820,480,767 0.079 $1,682,216,405 0.068 $1,954,339,647 0.073 $1,820,480,767 8.2% 5.5%
0.085 $2,618,314,765 0.085 $2,618,314,765 0.077 $2,890,347,468 0.083 $2,681,406,687 0.069 $3,225,460,217 0.077 $2,890,347,468 7.8% 10.4%
$1,994,650,781 $1,957,405,625 $2,175,170,875 $2,016,919,125 $2,406,803,245 $2,166,313,186 3.0%
0.207 $187,256,522 0.198 $195,768,182 0.160 $242,263,125 0.185 $209,524,865 0.196 $197,765,816 0.188 $206,181,383 -1.6% 29.4%
0.077 $1,807,394,260 0.079 $1,761,637,443 0.072 $1,932,907,750 0.077 $1,807,394,260 0.063 $2,209,037,429 0.071 $1,960,131,803 8.5% 6.9%
$52,654,947,731 $50,391,163,258 $55,855,840,211 $52,352,104,645 $63,945,901,297 $56,941,941,789 8.8% 3.9%
$146,527,835,415 $144,007,705,474 $161,568,718,507 $151,331,569,251 $177,603,887,204 $160,451,301,684 6.0% 5.1% 10.3%
FY24 Equalization Calculation
ADJUSTED 2022-23 ACTUAL 2022-23 2022-23 CURRENT 2022-23 2022-23
DISTRICT ASSESSMENT DIVISION III 2022-23 Units CURRENT EXP EXP CAPITATION ASSESSED VALUE NUMBER OF
NAME TO SALES RATIO PER UNIT
(less intensive & complex)
TAX RATE TAX RATE OF REAL ESTATE CAPITATIONS
APPOQUINIMINK 0.245 $15,602 769.00 1.3680 $2,615,848,503
NCC TAX DISTRICT $6,465 2,638.92 0.4680 $17,649,066,227
BRANDYWINE 0.246 $0 587.07 1.3710 $3,445,863,188
CHRISTINA 0.260 $0 709.06 1.6920 $5,597,445,044
COLONIAL 0.257 $0 491.18 1.1180 $3,136,236,771
RED CLAY 0.247 $0 851.61 1.1080 $5,469,521,224
NEW CASTLE TOTAL 3,407.92 $20,264,914,730
CAESAR RODNEY 0.194 $19,861 447.74 0.9500 $12.00 $996,961,600 14,024
CAPITAL 0.214 $14,796 361.41 1.1900 $1,375,168,300
LAKE FOREST 0.187 $20,756 225.58 0.9508 $10.00 $558,137,200 8,572
MILFORD $17,461 266.28 $472,203,343
KENT 0.204 1.1390 289,810,900
SUSSEX 0.071 3.2188 182,392,443
SMYRNA $19,860 344.36 $858,114,170
NEW CASTLE 0.230 1.0485 $116,325,070
KENT 0.190 1.3173 $741,789,100
KENT TOTAL 1,645.37 $4,260,584,613
CAPE HENLOPEN 0.064 $1,225 358.29 1.9980 $1,459,158,027
DELMAR 0.075 $20,617 81.79 1.8710 $10.00 $61,685,749 3,426
INDIAN RIVER 0.070 $1,483 595.61 2.3500 $7.00 $1,851,008,568 51,743
LAUREL 0.073 $16,546 158.57 1.5000 $24.30 $132,895,096 7,321
SEAFORD 0.077 $16,969 198.31 2.7400 $222,556,755
WOODBRIDGE $16,744 141.26 $177,931,458 492
KENT 0.188 0.9840 $8.82 $38,762,100 7,006
SUSSEX 0.071 2.3790 $8.82 $139,169,358
SUSSEX TOTAL 1,533.83 $3,905,235,653
REGULAR TOTAL 6,587.12 $28,430,734,996
NCC VO-TECH $7,462 329.10 0.1500 $20,264,914,730
POLYTECH $19,399 88.70 $4,116,954,270
NEW CASTLE 0.1359 $116,325,070
KENT 0.1081 $4,000,629,200
SUSSEX VOTECH $1,585 91.07 0.2750 $4,048,865,996
VOTECH TOTAL 508.87 28,430,734,996
TOTAL Intensive and Complex Units 2,877.17
TOTAL STATE
9,973.16 $28,430,734,996
3-Feb-23 charter units
1,186.35
total units 11,159.51
Table 1 - District Tax Rate Report
FY24 formula with FY23 units (New Version - Total All Units).xls
Page 1 of 4
FY24 Equalization Calculation
DISTRICT
NAME
APPOQUINIMINK
NCC TAX DISTRICT
BRANDYWINE
CHRISTINA
COLONIAL
RED CLAY
NEW CASTLE TOTAL
CAESAR RODNEY
CAPITAL
LAKE FOREST
MILFORD
KENT
SUSSEX
SMYRNA
NEW CASTLE
KENT
KENT TOTAL
CAPE HENLOPEN
DELMAR
INDIAN RIVER
LAUREL
SEAFORD
WOODBRIDGE
KENT
SUSSEX
SUSSEX TOTAL
REGULAR TOTAL
NCC VO-TECH
POLYTECH
NEW CASTLE
KENT
SUSSEX VOTECH
VOTECH TOTAL
TOTAL Intensive and Complex Units
TOTAL STATE
3-Feb-23
2022-23 2022-23 2022-23 2022-23 2022-23 2022-23 2022-23
ADJUSTED FULL VALUE REAL ESTATE TAX CAPITATION TAX CURRENT EXPENSE DISTRICT DISTRICT ABILITY
OF REAL ESTATE COLLECTIBLE COLLECTIBLE TAX COLLECTIBLE ABILITY EFFORT INDEX
$10,676,932,665 $35,784,807.52 $0.00 $35,784,807.52 13,884,178 0.00335160 0.569996901
$69,883,275,261 $82,597,629.94 $0.00 $82,597,629.94 26,481,771 0.00118194 1.08717475
$14,007,573,935 $47,242,784.31 $0.00 $47,242,784.31 23,860,143 0.00337266 0.979547196
$21,528,634,785 $94,708,770.14 $0.00 $94,708,770.14 30,362,219 0.00439920 1.246481492
$12,203,255,918 $35,063,127.10 $0.00 $35,063,127.10 24,844,774 0.00287326 1.019969945
$22,143,810,623 $60,602,295.16 $0.00 $60,602,295.16 26,002,291 0.00273676 1.067490298
$80,560,207,927 $355,999,414.18 $0.00 $355,999,414.18
$5,138,977,320 $9,471,135.20 $168,288.00 $9,639,423.20 11,477,593 0.00187575 0.471197672
$6,426,020,093 $16,364,502.77 $0.00 $16,364,502.77 17,780,416 0.00254660 0.729951902
$2,984,690,909 $5,306,768.50 $85,720.00 $5,392,488.50 13,231,186 0.00180672 0.543189168
$3,989,549,315 $9,171,794.11 $0.00 $9,171,794.11 14,982,535 0.00229895 0.615088518
$1,420,641,667 $3,300,946.15 $0.00 $3,300,946.15
$2,568,907,648 $5,870,847.96 $0.00 $5,870,847.96
$4,409,914,332 $10,991,256.17 $0.00 $10,991,256.17 12,806,117 0.00249240 0.525738503
$505,761,174 $1,219,668.36 $0.00 $1,219,668.36
$3,904,153,158 $9,771,587.81 $0.00 $9,771,587.81
$22,949,151,968 $51,305,456.75 $254,008.00 $51,559,464.75
$22,799,344,172 $29,153,977.38 $0.00 $29,153,977.38 63,633,772 0.00127872 2.612401943
$822,476,653 $1,154,140.36 $34,260.00 $1,188,400.36 10,055,956 0.00144490 0.412834232
$26,442,979,543 $43,498,701.35 $362,201.00 $43,860,902.35 44,396,467 0.00165870 1.822639335
$1,820,480,767 $1,993,426.44 $177,900.30 $2,171,326.74 11,480,613 0.00119272 0.471321661
$2,890,347,468 $6,098,055.09 $0.00 $6,098,055.09 14,574,895 0.00210980 0.598353411
$2,166,313,186 $3,692,258.09 $66,132.36 $3,758,390.45 15,335,645 0.00173492 0.629584999
$206,181,383 $381,419.06 $4,339.44 $385,758.50
$1,960,131,803 $3,310,839.03 $61,792.92 $3,372,631.95
$56,941,941,789 $85,590,558.71 $640,493.66 $86,231,052.37
$160,451,301,684 $492,895,429.63 $894,501.66 $493,789,931.29 24,358,339 0.00082894
$80,560,207,927 $30,397,372.10 $0.00 $30,397,372.10 23,639,114 0.00390730 0.970473135
$20,586,425,704 $4,482,765.94 $0.00 $4,482,765.94 12,511,730 0.00403929 0.513652854
$158,085.77 $0.00 $158,085.77
$4,324,680.17 $0.00 $4,324,680.17
$59,304,668,053 $11,134,381.49 $0.00 $11,134,381.49 38,664,434 0.00316213 1.58731815
$160,451,301,684 $46,014,519.52 $0.00 $46,014,519.52
$160,451,301,684 $538,909,949.15 $894,501.66 $539,804,450.81 24,358,339
FY24 formula with FY23 units (New Version - Total All Units).xls
Page 2 of 4
FY24 Equalization Calculation
DISTRICT
NAME
APPOQUINIMINK
NCC TAX DISTRICT
BRANDYWINE
CHRISTINA
COLONIAL
RED CLAY
NEW CASTLE TOTAL
CAESAR RODNEY
CAPITAL
LAKE FOREST
MILFORD
KENT
SUSSEX
SMYRNA
NEW CASTLE
KENT
KENT TOTAL
CAPE HENLOPEN
DELMAR
INDIAN RIVER
LAUREL
SEAFORD
WOODBRIDGE
KENT
SUSSEX
SUSSEX TOTAL
REGULAR TOTAL
NCC VO-TECH
POLYTECH
NEW CASTLE
KENT
SUSSEX VOTECH
VOTECH TOTAL
TOTAL Intensive and Complex Units
TOTAL STATE
3-Feb-23
2022-23 2022-23 5% OF THE BASIC 2023-24 *excluding referrendum
EFFORT INDEX EFFORT AMOUNT 95% OF THE FORMULA DIVISION III 105% OF THE
(COMPUTED) INDEX AUTHORIZED PRIOR YEAR PER UNIT FORM. OR FLOOR PRIOR YEAR
4.043226226 1.00000000 $1,483 $14,822 $16,975 $16,975 $16,382
1.425838032 1.00000000 $1,483 $6,142 $5,474
4.068632105 1.00000000 $0 $0 $0 $6,142 $6,788
5.307005853 1.00000000 $0 $0 $0 $6,142 $6,788
3.466177404 1.00000000 $0 $0 $0 $6,142 $6,788
3.301509669 1.00000000 $0 $0 $0 $6,142 $6,788
2.262821031 1.00000000 $1,483 $18,868 $19,172 $19,172 $20,854
3.072108816 1.00000000 $1,483 $14,056 $13,418 $14,056 $15,536
2.17954442 1.00000000 $1,483 $19,718 $17,571 $19,718 $21,794
2.773360457 1.00000000 $1,483 $16,588 $15,972 $16,588 $18,334
3.006720351 1.00000000 $1,483 $18,867 $17,959 $18,867 $20,853
1.542592863 1.00000000 $1,483 $1,164 ($28,443) $1,483 $1,286
1.743070918 1.00000000 $1,483 $19,586 $20,470 $20,470 $21,648
2.000981314 1.00000000 $1,483 $1,409 ($10,881) $1,483 $1,557
1.438848093 1.00000000 $1,483 $15,719 $19,169 $19,169 $17,373
2.545172065 1.00000000 $1,483 $16,121 $16,344 $16,344 $17,817
2.09293872 1.00000000 $1,483 $15,907 $15,650 $15,907 $17,581
4.713601139 1.00000000 $1,483 $7,089 $8,069 $8,069 $7,835
4.872826277 1.00000000 $1,483 $18,429 $18,228 $18,429 $20,369
3.814652389 1.00000000 $1,483 $1,506 ($5,648) $1,506 $1,664
FY24 formula with FY23 units (New Version - Total All Units).xls
Page 3 of 4
FY24 Equalization Calculation
DISTRICT
NAME
APPOQUINIMINK
NCC TAX DISTRICT
BRANDYWINE
CHRISTINA
COLONIAL
RED CLAY
NEW CASTLE TOTAL
CAESAR RODNEY
CAPITAL
LAKE FOREST
MILFORD
KENT
SUSSEX
SMYRNA
NEW CASTLE
KENT
KENT TOTAL
CAPE HENLOPEN
DELMAR
INDIAN RIVER
LAUREL
SEAFORD
WOODBRIDGE
KENT
SUSSEX
SUSSEX TOTAL
REGULAR TOTAL
NCC VO-TECH
POLYTECH
NEW CASTLE
KENT
SUSSEX VOTECH
VOTECH TOTAL
TOTAL Intensive and Complex Units
TOTAL STATE
3-Feb-23
FORMULA FROZEN DIFFERENCE
2023-2024 ACTUAL 2023-24 2023-24 FORMULA VS
DIVISION III 2022-23 STATE STATE FROZEN
PER UNIT UNITS EQUALIZATION EQUALIZATION AMOUNT
$16,382 967.31 $15,846,472 $15,091,971 ($754,502)
4,065.31
$6,142 832.05 $5,110,451 $5,379,203 $268,752
$6,142 1,290.18 $8,398,952 $8,620,543 $221,591
$6,142 753.24 $4,676,953 $4,899,467 $222,514
$6,142 1,189.84 $7,386,299 $7,738,427 $352,128
5,032.62 $41,419,127 $41,729,610 $310,483
$19,172 613.49 $11,687,404 $12,138,246 $450,842
$14,056 560.32 $8,520,724 $8,907,481 $386,756
$19,718 265.60 $5,237,101 $5,512,794 $275,693
$16,588 323.57 $5,367,379 $5,649,856 $282,477
$18,867 488.99 $9,225,774 $9,711,341 $485,567
2,251.97 $40,038,383 $41,919,718 $1,881,335
$1,286 532.83 $715,799 $702,757 ($13,043)
$20,470 88.81 $1,817,941 $1,830,996 $13,055
$1,483 850.52 $1,263,467 $1,270,838 $7,371
$17,373 183.34 $3,185,166 $3,033,544 ($151,622)
$16,344 265.96 $4,346,850 $4,513,075 $166,225
$15,907 193.31 $3,074,982 $3,236,783 $161,800
2,114.77 $14,404,205 $14,587,992 $183,786
9,399.36 $95,861,715 $98,237,320 $2,375,605
$7,835 380.24 $2,969,308 $2,827,949 ($141,360)
$18,429 92.51 $1,704,867 $1,794,601 $89,735
$0
$0
$1,506 101.05 $152,181 $160,164 $7,983
573.80 $4,826,356 $4,782,715 ($43,642)
9,973.16 $100,688,071 $103,020,035 $2,331,963
Charter units 1,186.35
Total units 11,159.51
Charters FY 22 9,646,811.00$
FY24 formula with FY23 units (New Version - Total All Units).xls
Page 4 of 4
District
FY23
Units
FY24 Unit
Value
Total Cost
"True" Formula
Amount
Total Cost
FY24 Formula
Unfrozen
Total Cost
APPOQUINIMINK 967.31 $15,602 $15,091,971 $16,975 $16,420,087 $16,382 $15,846,472
BRANDYWINE 832.05 $6,465 $5,379,203 $5,474 $4,554,642 $6,142 $5,110,451
CHRISTINA 1,290.18 $6,465 $8,620,543 $5,474 $7,790,005 $6,142 $8,398,952
COLONIAL 753.24 $6,465 $4,899,467 $5,474 $4,200,722 $6,142 $4,676,953
RED CLAY 1,189.84 $6,465 $7,738,427 $5,474 $6,633,203 $6,142 $7,386,299
TOTAL NEW CASTLE 5,032.62
CAESAR RODNEY 613.49 $19,861 $12,138,246 $19,172 $11,667,270 $19,172 $11,687,404
CAPITAL 560.32 $14,796 $8,907,481 $13,418 $8,163,106 $14,056 $8,520,724
LAKE FOREST 265.60 $20,756 $5,512,794 $17,571 $4,666,858 $19,718 $5,237,101
MILFORD 323.57 $17,461 $5,649,856 $15,972 $5,174,768 $16,588 $5,367,379
SMYRNA 488.99 $19,860 $9,711,341 $17,959 $8,781,771 $18,867 $9,225,774
TOTAL KENT 2,251.97
CAPE HENLOPEN 532.83 $1,225 $702,757 ($28,443) ($11,986,779) $1,286 $715,799
DELMAR 88.81 $20,617 $1,830,996 $20,470 $1,817,941 $20,470 $1,817,941
INDIAN RIVER 850.52 $1,483 $1,270,838 ($10,881) ($8,766,269) $1,483 $1,263,467
LAUREL 183.34 $16,546 $3,033,544 $19,169 $3,514,253 $17,373 $3,185,166
SEAFORD 265.96 $16,969 $4,513,075 $16,344 $4,346,850 $16,344 $4,346,850
WOODBRIDGE 193.31 $16,744 $3,236,783 $15,650 $3,025,302 $15,907 $3,074,982
TOTAL SUSSEX 2,114.77
NCC VOTECH 380.24 $7,462 $2,827,949 $8,069 $3,057,990 $7,835 $2,969,308
POLYTECH 92.51 $19,399 $1,794,601 $18,228 $1,686,272 $18,429 $1,704,867
SUSSEX VOTECH 101.05 $1,585 $160,164 ($5,648) ($570,730) $1,506 $152,181
TOTAL VOTECH 573.80
TOTAL STATE 9,973.16 $103,020,035 $74,177,262 $100,688,071
Table 8. FY 2024 Summary
Formula Frozen
No Ceilings or Floors
5% Ceiling/Floor from Previous
Fiscal Year
