MFISD tax rate drops a cent
The Marble Falls Independent School District board of trustees approved a property tax rate of $1.185 per $100 value for the 2020-21 fiscal year during a meeting Aug. 17.
“It dropped by a penny,” Superintendent Dr. Chris Allen said.
The previous rate was $1.1986 per $100 valuation.
While the tax rate dropped, Allen noted property values across the school district zoning area rose 2.5 percent.
“It’s the lowest it’s gone up since I’ve been here,” said Allen, who was hired in 2015. “The appraisal value went up 2.5 percent this year compared to past years, where it’d be six to seven percent.
A property tax bill is dependent on the tax rate and appraised value. The school district sets its own property tax rate, but it doesn’t set appraised values.
Allen noted that part of the reason MFISD was able to cut a penny off the latest property tax rate was due to House Bill 3, which the Texas Legislature passed during its last session. The bill was designed to help lift the tax burden off local taxpayers’ shoulders.
“It’s part of the state’s ongoing effort to provide tax relief,” Allen said. “What we should see is an increase (of funding) from the state. They haven’t told us where that revenue stream is coming from.”
Allen noted the school district’s budget is “pretty flat, as long as our student enrollment numbers don’t change a whole lot.”
MFISD’s first day of class for in-person learning is Wednesday, Aug. 19. Remote learners start Friday, Aug. 21. Allen said about 70 percent of the students are beginning the year in person.