Understanding Delaware’s Property Reassessment and the Push for Fair, Transparent Education Funding

DelawareKidsCAN stands at the forefront of the fight for equitable, transparent education funding in Delaware. Right now, a historic conflict is playing out in New Castle County that puts school districts and taxpayers under tremendous strain and underscores why our mission matters more than ever.

Why Reassessment Matters—and Why It Hurts

After more than 40 years without a county-wide property reassessment, New Castle County completed one in 2025 following a 2020 Chancery Court decision declaring the existing system unconstitutional. That decision mandated reassessments every five years, starting now.

Although reassessment was designed to be revenue-neutral at the county level, meaning total collections are unchanged—, individual homeowners are seeing their school district tax bills rise. School districts are permitted to increase revenue by up to 10% automatically after reassessment, and many, including Christina and Appoquinimink, have done just that.
While counties claim neutrality, residents are feeling sticker shock as their share of the tax burden jumps, especially in residential properties, which have risen in value far faster than commercial ones.

Why Residential Homeowners Are Paying More

A critical piece of this puzzle lies in how taxing authority differs between counties and school districts. New Castle County, like other counties, has the flexibility to “split rates”. Splitting rates is a tool that applies different tax rates to different classes of property, such as residential, commercial, and industrial. This flexibility allows counties to balance out changes in assessed value and prevent any one group, like homeowners, from bearing a disproportionate increase.

School districts, however, do not have that authority. They must apply the same tax rate uniformly across all properties, regardless of the type or how much its value has changed. Because many residential properties have seen sharp increases in assessed value, while many commercial and industrial properties have remained flat, residential taxpayers are now covering a much larger share of school taxes. Meanwhile, commercial property owners are effectively paying less relative to their share of the tax base. For example, your Aunt Suzy may see a 60% increase in her assessed property value causing her taxes to go up while the Chase Center’s value has remained neutral and their tax bill has actually decreased.

This one-size-fits-all tax rule for school districts creates structural inequity that unfairly burdens families while denying districts the tools they need to responsibly manage funding and ensure fairness across sectors. It’s a policy gap that urgently needs attention.

DelawareKidsCAN’s Role: Equity and Transparency in Funding

At DelawareKidsCAN, we believe that public trust in education funding depends on transparency and accountability at every step and equity is our guiding principle. Funding should be distributed based on student need, not the relative wealth of a community’s property values. Reassessment should not be a blunt instrument that penalizes working families; instead, it should be used to ensure that schools serving the highest-need students receive the support they deserve.

Transparent communication is equally vital. Taxpayers must be given clear, accessible information about how reassessment affects them through tools like public tax calculators, community forums, and easily digestible breakdowns of where new revenue is going and why. Finally, we support future legislation that would require our school districts to undergo a yearly independent audit of which the results are made available to the public. It is only through transparency at every step of the process that we can ensure tax dollars are being spent effectively and our students are getting the resources they need.

The August Special Legislative Session: Why Now Matters

Lawmakers are scheduling a special session this August in Dover to address escalating public frustration over tax increases, particularly those levied for schools. Options on the table include:

• Capping or rescinding the 10% school tax hike rule
• Creating targeted tax relief for households disproportionately impacted
• Granting school districts the authority to split tax rates like counties do, helping to rebalance the tax burden

These decisions will shape how property tax dollars support or undermine equitable education in Delaware for years to come.

Take Action: Your Voice Matters

If you care about education equity and fiscal responsibility:

• Attend or follow the August special session
• Contact your state representatives and senators to express support legislation that would allow districts to split tax rates and hold school spending accountable
• Engage with DelawareKidsCAN – serve on education funding committees, share feedback, and join our advocacy efforts to ensure meaningful change

In Summary

Delaware’s reassessment controversy is more than a tax issue, it’s an education funding crossroads. At DelawareKidsCAN, we strive to center equity and transparency as guiding principles for education policy. We believe every student deserves adequately funded schools, and every taxpayer deserves clarity and fairness.

Join us in demanding reform at the August session. Together, we can build a funding system that works for Delaware’s students and families.