Hodges Elementary School would be one of six LISD schools to be consolidated. Image by Terry Greenberg.
Lubbock ISD promises if voters approve a $290 million bond package on the May 3 ballot – the district’s first bond election in seven years – the tax rate will not go up.
That’s true.
But when you look at the ballot, at the end of the language describing the issue, it says: “This is a property tax increase.”
But voting for the bond does not automatically trigger a property tax increase.
Confusing? We’ll explain.
First, though, why is LISD asking voters for this?
Its neighboring school districts – Frenship and Lubbock-Cooper – have asked voters to approve bonds to keep up with growth. LISD’s challenges come from little or no growth.
“We have a declining birth rate. That is the main factor. But also we know the growth in Lubbock as far as new homes is not within Lubbock ISD boundaries. We have some, but that’s been very, very slow,” Kathy Rollo, LISD superintendent, told LubbockLights.com.
LISD wants to consolidate six elementary schools into three new buildings, which they hope will save millions in operating costs.
There’s a lot at stake for the district. This school year, LISD has an $8.6 million budget deficit on a general fund of $242.8 million, which represents a 3.5 percent shortfall. Rollo said 85 percent of districts in Texas also ran a deficit.
The Legislature is discussing increasing funding for public schools that could help in the future.
Back to the bond. Between now and when votes are cast, the Moving Ahead PAC is advocating for the bond and a small group opposes it based in part for property tax concerns.
Proposition A
Voters in the district will vote yes or no on Position A.
- $151 million to consolidate six elementary schools into three. (The schools are: Wolffarth, McWhorter, Bean, Hodges, Williams and Stewart.)
- $17 million for safety and security.
- $47 million for middle school science lab, auditorium and fine arts renovations, along with expansions in vocational training for culinary arts, health professions, and advanced welding.
- $75 million for infrastructure such as roofing, HVAC, electrical, plumbing, locker room renovations, kitchen updates, parking, paving, and drainage improvements.
Tax increase or not?
The ballot’s property tax language is mandated.
“That is required language for any school bond elections across the state. … We will not increase the tax rate with this bond,” said Rollo.
That state mandate was created because tax rates usually go up when bonds are passed.
Deanne Clark’s name appeared on a “vote no” Facebook flier making the rounds. She’s with a group of 30 folks called Conservative Action Network.
“I know that the tax rate may stay the same, but the appraisal creep may be more, and it may cost us more,” Clark told LubbockLights.com, because of yearly tax appraisals set by the Lubbock Central Appraisal District (LCAD).
Even if LISD’s tax rate stays the same, when appraisals increase, so does the amount of money the district gets.
Some of her other concerns were:
- Neighborhood schools increase property values and keep families connected.
- It’s dangerous for students to cross major thoroughfares forced by having to travel farther.
True, the appraisals might go up, Rollo said, but added taxable values are set by the LCAD, not the school district.
“That is out of our hands completely,” Rollo said.
One way the tax rate would drop – which could lower property taxes – is if the bond failed and LISD had no debt. But it still has existing debt.
Even if there was no debt, the school board would need to vote on lowering the rate. It wouldn’t just be automatic, Rollo said.
LCAD explains property tax process
LCAD chief appraiser Tim Radloff said he cannot comment on the school bond and “I don’t know the language that has to be on the ballot.”
But he was able to explain the property tax bill.
“You take the assessed value times the tax rate and then you divide that by 100. And that will give you the tax levy for that particular jurisdiction,” Radloff said.
Let’s use round numbers. If the taxable value of your home is $200,000 and the tax rate is $1 per hundred, then the bill is $2,000.
Easy, right?
But Radloff said the appraisal can go up as home values go up. Even if the rate stays the same, the bill can go up to match the appraisals each year. They usually go up but sometimes go down.
“There’s two components to a tax levy. It’s the … assessed value of the property and the tax rate. So, there could be all sorts of reasons why the assessed value may change,” Radloff said.
“Folks come down and protest their value in mass down here, but when it’s time for the budget hearings and tax rate hearings, folks don’t typically attend those hearings and voice their opinion. They only attack it from one side,” Radloff said.
LubbockLights.com asked if it could confuse people because part of the tax bill is determined by local governments and the other part is determined by LCAD.
Radloff answered, “It possibly could.”
Consolidating schools
How much LISD would save on consolidating six schools into three is not known, but when Carmona-Harrison Elementary School replaced three schools it saved the district $1.8 million in operational costs the first year, Rollo said.
It takes a couple years to build a new school. This is not a quick fix for next year’s budget, she said.
“We also have a lot of schools who are operating at 50 percent capacity and in some cases even less and so. We have a lot of empty seats in elementary and middle school campuses in particular. And it’s really just not an effective or efficient way to operate a school district,” Rollo said.
The bond would also pay for renovations – replacing less efficient HVAC system. Rollo hopes those changes will save money over time.
There’s a limit on how far school consolidation can go and still be healthy, Rollo said.
“There is a sweet spot between 600 to 750 kids. So, we’re not talking about a mega school with 1,000-plus kids. But when you have a slightly larger school with more students in it, you have more teachers to plan and collaborate with,” Rollo said.
Adam Hernandez with Lubbock Compact supports the bond, after previously opposing consolidations.
He shared Clark’s concerns that neighborhood schools preserve property value, it’s more dangerous to send kids across major thoroughfares and tearing down schools just to build new ones is not ideal.
“In terms of closing down or consolidating schools, this is an issue that I’ve raised many times in the past. I’ve come out and led whole organized movements against schools closing. So, I get the sentiment. I still would prefer that neighborhood schools do not close,” Hernandez said.
Rollo said, “Adam in previous school consolidations was very vocally against it. … This year he was actually part of our stakeholder group. … And so, he saw why it was necessary to do this.”
Hernandez posted online in support of the bond, saying, “… voting against the LISD bond only hurts the students and communities.”
Town hall
Lubbock Compact organized a town hall on Tuesday, April 8 from 6-8 p.m. at the Sun ‘n Fun Center, 6204 Elgin Ave., Lubbock.
Help from the Legislature
Hernandez is critical of state lawmakers for not putting up more money for education.
“When they’re not providing more funds to the schools, this is the outcome ultimately,” Hernandez said.
Clark said, “I agree with it in the past, but I think they’re looking this year at sending more money to the schools. … The state still has to decide how much money Lubbock will get.”
There are competing proposals in the Texas House and Senate in the current legislative session. Both would increase the basic allotment, which currently stands at $6,160 per student.
Lubbock ISD cannot wait and see if state lawmakers put up more money for school systems in Texas, Rollo said.
“We cannot wait, and we haven’t been waiting. We actually have consolidated 14 schools since 2010 because we have declining enrollment in our district,” Rollo said.
“We are still by far the largest district, serving 24,000 students. But every year we trickle down and lose more students,” Rollo said.
Advocating for the bond
Technically Rollo or other school officials cannot lobby in favor of the bond – although they can answer questions and provide factual information. However, a private group can.
Melynn Henry, a mom with two kids in LISD schools, agreed to co-chair the Moving Ahead PAC and act as treasurer.
“I’m really interested and really passionate about our education system because we’re the only country in the world that truly educates the masses,” Henry said.
Henry does not expect the bond to benefit her children so much as it will benefit kids in the future. She said her children are getting what they need now because people 15 years ago made hard choices.
“We stand on the shoulders of giants of people who have passed bond elections and did hard things in making schools efficient. And now it’s our turn to be the giant for someone else and make schools efficient,” Henry said.
“When new businesses come in and are deciding whether or not to plant in Lubbock. They ask two questions. First, do you have workers? … The other thing businesses ask … is your community passing its school bonds because if it is, that tells us the city wants to reinvest in itself,” Henry said.
“There are two schools, Stuart and Williams, that are going to be combined. … Those schools also have a combined maintenance need over the next 10 years of $29.3 million. … And now we’ve freed up … $29.3 million in maintenance and operations that can go back into students,” Henry said.
Some final thoughts
Rollo said more than half of LISD’s school buildings are over the age of 60, Rollo said.
The district can pay off the $290 million, if approved, while keeping the same tax rate. Lubbock ISD’s tax rate for debt (not the entire tax rate, but just the portion for debt) is 17.5 cents per $100.
“Our tax rate is the lowest it’s been since 1993,” Rollo said.
Clark said, “More debt and taxes don’t improve education.”
Hernandez said, “We’ve talked to many students, [and] admins. We went and visited a lot of the school buildings. We’ve talked to a bunch of people out in the community and the neighborhoods around these schools, and they all want the new buildings versus the old buildings that are falling apart and not in good shape.”
The idea is to save money, he said.
“It’s actually extremely fiscally conservative. It’s the most fiscally conservative thing we could do in this situation,” Hernandez said.
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