BRENHAM SCHOOL BOARD HOLDS PRELIMINARY BUDGET WORKSHOP

  

The Brenham School Board held a workshop session to begin looking at the budget for the next school year.  Washington County Chief Tax Appraiser Willy Dilworth explained to the board how the state comptroller’s office conducts a property value study of each district every two years.  He said that his office is required to have his appraisals fall between 95 and 105 percent of what the state study says they are in the district. He explained how everyone in the district would be happy if his appraisals fell well below the actual values, but the state is not going to let that happen because the state would have to increase school funding.

While no preliminary numbers were presented at the workshop, Dilworth did say where he felt property values would be this year:

BISD Director of Business and Finance Kim Weatherby reviewed some preliminary budget information for the next school year.  She expects the maintenance and operations tax rate to remain at the state cap of $1.04.  The debt service rate could actually go down depending to the property appraisals for the district.  The certified district property value is expected July 25.  Weatherby explained that there are a lot of unknowns at this point including where employee health care rates will be this year.  Weatherby says that with the state legislature is session, a lot of other unknowns are in the mix:

In the only action taken during the meeting, the board approved the purchase of playground equipment for the new Early Childhood Learning Center.  The old Alton Elementary campus is being repurposed for teaching Pre-K students beginning next year.  The existing playground equipment will be removed to make way for the new equipment.  The district plans to recapture some of the cost of the playground though donations, but the equipment needed to be ordered now to insure its installation by the next school year.