Instructions for PI 401-Tax Levies Reporting

Description: This application collects school district tax levy information and replaces all prior paper reporting processes. Levy amounts are entered by fund. Once data is submitted, the program automatically apportions the total levy across municipalities, creates individual municipal tax certification pages, and reports information to both DPI and the Department of Revenue.

Note: The program opens for district entry on October 14, 2011. The due date for the PI-401 is November 11.

Special Note: Each year, per Wis. Stats. 120.12 (3)(a), prior to November 1, each school board must vote a levy necessary to operate and maintain the schools of the school district. In addition, by November 10 (changed from November 6 under 2011 Act 105, first effective for the 2012-13 fiscal year), the district clerk must deliver to the clerk of each municipality a statement showing the proportion of tax to be collected from the property in the school district lying within that municipality (s.120.17(8)(a) Wis. Stats.)

The PI 401 Tax Levies Report can be accessed through the "School Finance Reporting Portal." District personnel can go to the "Status and Deadlines" link or the "Financial Data Home" link and select the PI 401 Tax Levies Report. You must enter your user id and password to log into the program.

Instructions: The district should not enter data into this application unless their revenue limit computation has been updated with their 3rd Friday FTE student enrollment, October 1 Tax Apportionment values, and October 15th Aid Certification, thus completing all the information required to ensure the district levies within their revenue limit. Additionally, the school board must have officially voted on levy amounts for the 2011-12 year.

After logging into the program and completing the contact information page, the district should input the tax levy by fund. Review your district’s data carefully. The amounts entered should agree with and total to the amounts on lines 19 (fund 10 levy), 14b (fund 38 non referendum debt), 14c (fund 41 capital expansion), 15a (fund 39 referendum approved debt), 15b (fund 80 community service) and 15c (prior year levy chargeback) of the district’s revenue limit worksheet.

The next step will be to view a reasonability report that compares the current year levy with the prior year levy.

If the reasonability report is correct, the district submits the levy data to the department and then prints out the PI 401 tax levy certification page. The district is required to sign and maintain this page on file in the district. The PI 401 tax levy data is used by the department to determine district compliance with the revenue limit statute, s. 121.92 Wis. Stats.

Note that the levy by municipality has already been calculated. Please review this data for accuracy. This information will be electronically submitted by the Department of Public Instruction to the Department of Revenue on the district’s behalf. There is no longer a paper form that is submitted to the Department of Revenue.

After printing the certification page, the district will then print the PI 1508 Tax Levy Certification forms that have already been populated with the apportioned levy to each of the district’s municipalities. Districts will then sign and send these completed forms to their municipalities.

The due date for the PI 401 is November 11. Should you have questions about this new report, please contact one of the team staff listed below.

Brad Adams	(608) 267-3752	bradley.adams@dpi.wi.gov
Bob Avery	(608) 267-9707	robert.avery@dpi.wi.gov
Erin Fath	(608) 266-3464	erin.fath@dpi.wi.gov
Brian Kahl	(608) 266-3862	brian.kahl@dpi.wi.gov

For questions about this information, contact dpifin@dpi.wi.gov (608) 267-9114

Last updated on 12/14/2011 1:43:54 PM