A reserve fund helped Homewood-Flossmoor High School District 233 weather the storm when Cook County was late in mailing out tax bills this year.

The Cook County Clerk was expected to mail tax bills for the second installment payable in August, but the process of switching over its computer systems pushed the bills to November, delaying payments until Dec. 15. 

H-F is expecting $20 million or more in taxes.

H-F has maintained a 10-month reserve fund for years. The school board has agreed to reduce the fund to 7.8 months in reserve. The district is using the money to cover building improvement costs and other expenses. But this tax season the reserve fund helped the district cover bills until it gets the delayed infusion of tax money.

Lawrence Cook, chief school business official, told members of the school board’s Finance Committee on Dec. 2, that for the current fiscal year that started July 1, District 233 received less than a 1% payment in property taxes. 

“That number should change by the time we meet again in January” as Cook County collects taxes this month, he said.

The reserve fund covered monthly expenses of $5.8 million August through November, Cook said. That reduced the reserve fund from $58.8 million (as of June 30) to $46.4 million. Another $10 million came from other fund balance reserves.

Cook said investments held by the Bloom Township School Treasurer’s Office have gone up 32% over the previous year, but H-F doesn’t have immediate access to those dollars because they are in long-term investments made on behalf of H-F and other regional schools.