The Caesar Rodney School District Board of Education has approved a special election for an operating expense referendum to be held on February 9, 2026, with an alternate date of February 18, 2026. The motion received unanimous approval during the Board’s October 13, 2025, meeting.
The district is seeking voter authorization to increase the school tax rate by 9.22 cents per $100 of assessed property value, beginning July 1, 2026, and continuing annually. The measure is projected to generate $6.1 million in its first year, with the average property owner, based on an assessment of $297,347, seeing an annual tax increase of approximately $274.12.
According to the district, the funds would be used to sustain and strengthen essential school operations, focusing on three primary areas: expanding public safety initiatives, enhancing student program funding, and recruiting and retaining qualified staff. District officials have stated that the referendum is designed to maintain financial stability while ensuring adequate support for students and staff.
This upcoming referendum follows a failed effort in April 2023, when voters rejected all three components of a multi-part funding proposal. That referendum sought approval for both operating and capital improvement measures, but each question was defeated by a wide margin. The final results showed roughly 67% of voters opposing the district’s operating request, with about 2,224 votes against and 1,095 in favor. The capital improvement question failed by a similar margin, with nearly two-thirds voting no.
The 2023 defeat marked the district’s first referendum attempt since its last successful one in 2015. Officials have since emphasized the need to address ongoing budget pressures, competitive pay challenges, and safety priorities through the 2026 proposal.
The referendum comes at a time when property and school taxes have already increased across Delaware as a result of the statewide reassessment of property values. Many homeowners have seen higher tax bills even without new spending measures, as reassessed values have adjusted decades-old assessments upward. At the current school tax rate of 0.3060 per $100 of assessed value, the same average property assessed at $297,347 has resulted in approximately $909.88 in annual school taxes.
In Caesar Rodney, the district’s current school tax rate stands at 0.3060 per $100 of assessed value for the 2024–2025 fiscal year, as part of a combined total tax rate of 0.3951 in Kent County. The upcoming referendum would add to those obligations, arriving as residents are already experiencing financial impacts from the reassessment process.
If approved by voters, the February 2026 referendum would provide the district with recurring annual funding to support operations beginning in the 2026–2027 fiscal year.
