RESERVE — The St. John the Baptist Parish Public School District should start seeing an influx of sales tax revenue in late summer, Superintendent Kevin George said.

During a special called meeting Thursday, School Board members unanimously approved procedural measures that will allow for the collection of an additional .25 percent in sales tax across St. John Parish starting July 1.

Parish voters approved the measure in late 2016.

George said the tax is estimated to generate an additional $200,000 monthly, starting in August, geared to salaries and District building needs.

Hugh Martin, a partner at the law firm of Foley & Judell, attended this week’s meeting as Bond Counsel, a role he serves for many area school boards and municipalities.

Martin said St. John School Board’s bond rating, which represents a public entity’s credit worthiness of governmental bonds, stands as an A++.

School Board leaders lauded the rating during the meeting as evidence the school system is and has been good stewards of the public’s money.

“The better the rating, the more aggressive investors are to purchase your bonds, which leads to more firms bidding, which leads to greater competition, which leads to better rates for the school system,” George said. “By maintaining that high rating, which has been quite difficult during the last eight years of budget cuts from the State, we are keeping our borrowing costs down. This allows us to make capital improvements without costing citizens more money.”