Marble Falls ISD board adopts 2022-23 tax rate and budget
The Marble Falls Independent School District Board of Trustees adopted a new budget and tax rate for fiscal year 2022-23 during a regular meeting Aug. 22. The new rate is set at $1.082052 per $100 valuation.
A 4 percent decrease from last year’s tax rate, the reduction marks the fifth consecutive year the district has lowered it.
“People in this community continue to deal with rising property values,” Superintendent Dr. Chris Allen said. “We’re doing the best we can at the local level.”
Among the highlights in the new budget are increases totaling $13 million for line items such as student transportation, instruction, and contracted instructional services between schools.
District officials decided to trim the budget through decreases to funding for extracurricular activities and health services, totaling nearly $130,000 in budget cuts from last fiscal year.
To calculate the district’s overall tax rate, school finance officials combine the overall maintenance and operations tax rate with the district’s debt service tax rate.
The district’s maintenance and operations tax rate for 2022 will be 0.8579 cents, while its interest and sinking tax rate, also known as the debt service rate, is set at 0.224152 cents.
“If the state would meet its obligation to fund public schools, we could drop the (maintenance and operations) tax rate even more,” Allen said. “The district continues to do the best we can by meeting the needs of our learners, being responsible for taxpayer dollars, and striving for efficiency.”
During the approval of the new budget, Allen revealed the district is required to send the state $16.9 million of “excess wealth” generated by local property tax dollars because of the state’s Robin Hood school finance law. (See related story.)
The next regular meeting for the Marble Falls ISD Board of Trustees is set for 6 p.m. Monday, Sept. 19, in the Central Office Community Room, 1800 Colt Circle in Marble Falls.
