BRENHAM SCHOOL BOARD TO DECREASE TAX RATE

  

The Brenham School Board will continue its decrease of the tax rate as values continue to increase.  Trustees set a proposed property tax rate of $.9346 at Monday’s noon meeting.  That is made up of an Interest and Sinking rate of $.08 and a Maintenance and Operations rate of $.8546.  That compares to last year’s overall rate of $.9884 per $100 valuation.  Trustees also agreed to essentially pay off their indebtedness early as they passed a resolution to fund an escrow fund that will pay off the bonds as needed.

The Budget for the upcoming school year was also discussed.  It will includes a 5% midpoint raise which will place the starting teacher pay at $50,000 and another school resource officer.  Although the average daily attendance has been going down each year since COVID hit, that is expected to turn around this year as the new budget is planned on a 2% growth in the student population.  The $50,000,000 budget and the proposed tax rate will be discussed again at a public meeting Monday, August 15 at 6:00 PM before the school board.

In other action, the board approved paying a stipend of $1000 to district staff as the COVID retention pay.  The one time stipend will go to all staff that is active on August 24th.  Trustees also approved the purchase of attendance credits.  The purchase of credits is a formality of Brenham being considered a gap district in the states Robin Hood Plan.

The Brenham School Board recognized long time board member Mark Schneider (L). Schneider served on the board for almost 7 years until his resignation in May of this year due to a move.
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2 Comments

  1. So let me make sure I’m understanding this correctly… School tax rate went down 8 cents but yet the evaluation of the property that is being taxed increased in value by 30, 40 percent? A home valued last year at $200,000 would be taxed at $.9884/$100=$1,986.80. New increase in tax value, let’s just use a 40% increase (like what my mothers property received) the tax value of this same property is now $280,000. $280,000 taxed at $.9346/$100=$2,616.88.
    Did I calculate this correctly? I’m not seeing the savings, are you?

  2. So, in effect, we’ll pay $0.05 less per $100 valuation in taxes. While I am certainly appreciative of this, the sticking point in my mind keeps occurring with the valuations and their continued skyrocketing trajectory. Take the equation A x B = C, and let A be the tax rate, B represent the valuation and C represent the intended revenue outcome. If every year, C is to increase, and A is to stay the same (or even be lowered as in this year’s decision), then B is the only other variable that can be changed (and this year’s evaluations would certainly reflect that). The bad thing is that valuations are not a wholly demonstrable quantity, in that many variables are part of the overall valuation of a piece of property; I do think that many of those are lumped together/overlooked and many taxpayers are suffering because of that generalization. It’s strange that many other states have found that a 2% income tax, with all of the proceeds going to education, resulted in tremendously lowered property taxes and even more money for school operations in their state; [the majority of] voters in Texas in 2019, however, decided they would rather pay super-high property taxes with no end in sight, and no way to ever revisit the income tax possibility again. If anyone can remember, the Lottery was going to ” …help fund Texas education and take some of the strain off of the property owner.”

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