AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Hays Consolidated Independent School District’s Board of Trustees will bring a tax rate increase to its voters for approval in November, after a unanimous vote by the board Monday night.
According to a post on the Hays CISD’s website, the board proposed a $0.12 “maintenance and operations tax rate increase.” The new rate will be higher than what Hays residents saw (and will see) on their fiscal year 2024 and 2025 taxes, but lower than the 2023 tax rate, the board said.
If voters reject the tax rate increase, Hays CISD said it will need to “make significant cuts in staffing,” increase class sizes, cut special programs and services, and could need to raise or create new fees.
However, if voters approve the proposal, it will bolster the CISD’s budget by $26 million, according to the district. That money will give a cost-of-living adjustment to Hays teachers and staff.
That figure factors in a potential $40,000 increase in the homestead property tax exemption, which will also be before voters in November.
A bill that would have provided such an adjustment failed earlier this year, which Hays CISD noted.