
Tarrant County school districts urge voters to approve property tax rate bumps
Anthony Tosie, Northwest ISD’s executive director of communications, stands on the auditorium stage of the district’s Eaton High School as he presents information regarding the district’s upcoming tax rate election to Northwest ISD residents during an Oct. 1 community meeting. (Matthew Sgroi | Fort Worth Report)
” data-medium-file=”https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/DSC_1041.jpg?fit=300%2C200&ssl=1″ data-large-file=”https://fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/DSC_1041.jpg?fit=780%2C520&ssl=1″ tabindex=”0″ role=”button”>Joey Burmeister doesn’t like paying more taxes. At an Oct. 1 Northwest ISD community meeting, he questioned if anyone does.That said, Burmeister knows the predicament facing the district he’s resided in for nearly a dozen years. Northwest ISD faces a $15.8 million budget deficit and is quickly growing in enrollment. The district isn’t optimistic about its chances for increased funding from the state.Now, Northwest ISD is asking its residents to cover the difference. The Fort Worth district, which serves 31,600 students, is one of two Tarrant County school districts to place a property tax rate increase on residents’ ballots in the upcoming Nov. 5 election. Residents of Grapevine-Colleyville ISD, sporting an enrollment of 13,568, will also consider raising the rate.“The way I always think of it, we have a $16 million deficit. If this is approved at the polls, we get back to pretty close to $0,” Northwest ISD Superintendent Mark Foust said. “We’re almost back to the starting block if our voters approve this.”Here’s what your ballot question will look like and what your vote means:
Northwest ISD:
Proposition A: Ratifying the ad valorem tax rate of $1.1179 per $100 valuation in Northwest Independent School District for the current year, a rate that will result in an increase of 4.29%in maintenance-and-operations tax revenue for the district for the current year as compared to the preceding year, which is an additional $13,849,486.A ‘Yes’ vote: Increases the district’s total tax rate from $1.0879 per $100 valuation to $1.1179 per $100 valuation.
A ‘No’ vote: Keeps the district’s total tax rate at $1.0879 as adopted by trustees in August.
Grapevine-Colleyville ISD:
Proposition A: Ratifying the ad valorem tax rate of 92.33 cents per $100 valuation in the Grapevine‐Colleyville Independent School District for the current year, a rate that will result in an increase of 1.08% in maintenance-and-operations tax revenue for the district for the current year as compared to the preceding year, which is an additional $1,513,042.A ‘Yes’ vote: Increases the district’s total tax rate from 89.33 cents per $100 valuation to 92.33 cents per $100 valuation.
A ‘No’ vote: Keeps the district’s total tax rate at 89.33 cents per $100 valuation as adopted by trustees in August.For both districts, levying a new rate would fund essential district operations like competitive staff salaries and student programs, officials said. Northwest ISD said class sizes would likely increase if a higher tax rate isn’t approved.Two rates form Texas school districts’ overall property tax:The maintenance-and-operations tax rate funds day-to-day operations.
The debt service rate pays off debt.At the Oct. 1 meeting, Northwest ISD Chief Financial Officer Jonathan Pastusek explained to residents how a 3-cent increase in the district’s maintenance-and-operations tax rate, from 66.69 cents to 69.69 cents, would create a total tax rate of $1.1179 per $100 of assessed property value and nearly pull the district completely out of its deficit.Here’s how Northwest ISD residents’ taxes would be impacted:
In 2023, the average home in Northwest ISD had an appraised value of $552,605, according to the district. However, only $420,208 of the value was used for taxes, resulting in an average property tax bill to Northwest ISD residents of $4,571.44.
In 2024, the average home in Northwest ISD had a market value of $527,881, according to the district, with a net taxable value of $393,911. If voters approve the proposed tax rate increase, the new average property tax bill would be $4,403.53.
This would represent a decrease of $167.91 from last year’s tax bill, as property values throughout the district fell on average.
But, in applying the proposed tax rate to last year’s appraisal numbers for reference, the average property tax bill to Northwest ISD would have been $4,697.50 with the approved tax bump — $126 higher than what the average homeowner paid in 2023.None of the new tax revenue would be subject to state recapture either, officials said. Recapture is a mechanism where districts deemed property-rich by the state must send back a portion of their local tax revenue to the state to support property-poor districts. The measure is often referred to as the Robin Hood law. During the 2023-24 school year, Northwest ISD sent $19.5 million of tax revenue to the state under recapture. “This money would stay in the district,” Pastusek said. “It pretty much washes our deficit.”Northwest ISD didn’t want to be forced into asking its residents for help but the circumstances demanded it, officials have said. Covering the district’s deficit through reserves would decrease the balance the district has in reserve funds to about $92 million, representing 27.4% of the district’s budget. The state recommends school districts maintain at least three months of operating expenses in their fund balances, or 25% of their budgets. “We can only keep running deficit budgets for so long before we need to start making some drastic changes,” board President Steve Sprowls has said.Grapevine-Colleyville ISD is in a similar situation. The district that covers parts of Grapevine, Colleyville and Euless will also ask its residents to consider a 3-cent increase in the maintenance-and-operations rate at the ballot box in November.Voter approval would generate nearly $6 million in funding for school district operations such as instruction, staff and transportation, according to the district. Grapevine-Colleyville ISD adopted a balanced budget for the 2024-25 school year, which includes the revenue the district expects to generate through the passage of the proposed rate.“Failure to pass the (voter-approved tax rate) would result in significant fiscal repercussions for GCISD,” Superintendent Brad Schnautz said in a June statement. District growth throughout Grapevine-Colleyville ISD is limited, officials said. As the community ages and housing costs rise, the district has lost 669 students since the 2019-20 school year. Since school districts partly receive state funding based on enrollment, this has represented $4.1 million in lost revenue.“If this is not successful, we are going to get to the point where it is going to impact the classroom,” Schnautz said during a Sept. 18 presentation. “We’re going to start to see programs, staffing ratios, those things will be affected. It’s important we know that.”Like Northwest ISD, Grapevine-Colleyville ISD is also considered a property-rich district, forced to send property tax revenue back to the state annually. In 2023, trustees adopted a maintenance-and-operations tax rate of 72.9 cents and a total tax rate of 92.47 cents per $100 valuation. During their Aug. 12 meeting, trustees approved a 70.69 cents maintenance-and-operations tax rate for a total rate of 89.33 cents per $100 valuation — the lowest rates in Grapevine-Colleyville ISD in more than 25 years. If voters approve the proposed rate, the total rate would increase to 92.33 cents per $100 valuation, which is still lower than the 2023 rate.Here’s how Grapevine-Colleyville ISD residents’ taxes would be impacted:
Last year, the average home in Grapevine-Colleyville ISD had an appraised value of $617,074, according to the Tarrant Appraisal District. However, only $443,277 was used for taxes, resulting in an average property tax bill to Grapevine-Colleyville ISD residents of $4,098.98.
In 2024, the average home in Grapevine-Colleyville ISD had a market value of $636,569, according to TAD, with a net taxable value of $485,971. If voters approve the proposed tax rate increase, the new average property tax bill would be $4,486.97.
This would represent an increase of $387.99 from last year’s tax bill, as property values rose throughout the district.
But, in applying the proposed tax rate to last year’s appraisal numbers for reference, the average property tax bill to Grapevine-Colleyville ISD would have been $4,092.78 with the approved tax bump — $6.20 lower than what the average homeowner paid in 2023.If the elections fail across the two districts, both tax rates will remain at the levels adopted earlier this year. Early voting starts Oct. 21 and ends Nov. 1. Election Day is Nov. 5. Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @matthewsgroi1.At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
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