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The annual budget of St. Louis Community College will increase by $30 million after voters approved a property tax hike in a special election Tuesday, the St. Louis Dispatch reported.
The district’s tax rate has not increased since 1984. The funding increase will finance a $350 million bond issue to invest in projects that will upgrade campus facilities. The goal is to attract new students to the institution’s health care, financial services, information technology, biotech and manufacturing programs, according to the college.
The institution has experienced significant enrollment declines, the Dispatch noted. The college enrolled 15,206 students in fall 2020, compared to more than 24,000 students in 2013, which means enrollment dropped by more than a third over that time.
The Invest in St. Louis Community College fund, the committee campaigning for the boost, drew nearly $550,000 in donations, according to filings from the Missouri Ethics Commission. That sum included two $25,000 donations from Washington University and St. Louis University.
