The Cy-Fair ISD board of trustees unanimously adopted a total property tax rate of $1.0369 per $100 of home valuation during a Nov. 9 regular meeting.
The adoption follows a failed 12-cent voter-approval tax rate election on Nov. 3.
In a nutshell
The adopted rate is $0.03 lower than the 2025 tax rate as a result of a decrease on the debt service side of the district’s property tax rate.
According to unofficial voting totals, local voters rejected all five of the district’s propositions, including a 12-cent VATRE and a four-proposition $1.63 billion bond intended to address the district's projected $80.9 million shortfall for fiscal year 2026-27.
Chief Financial Officer Karen Smith said the district has lost an additional $7.1 million in state funding as enrollment numbers were lower than originally anticipated as a result of lower birth rates, regeneration of homes and more competition in schooling choices.
The district's FY 2026-27 projected shortfall now sits at $88 million.
“We will spend much time at each board meeting working on budgetary priorities and understanding how we can, in effect, meet the requirements that we now have, which is to find a way to close an $88 million deficit, due to the fact that the VATRE did not pass,” Julie Hinaman, board of trustees president, said.
What it means
Superintendent Doug Killian said the district’s Long-Range Planning Committee will look into potential boundary changes as enrollment numbers drop at different rates throughout the district and campuses. CFISD staff will be notified of pullbacks on travel and limits on overtime usage, Killian said.
The district is working with task forces and plans to update the board and staff as they look into major planning areas, and will come back by February with more finalized plans, Killian said.
“This is going to be a multi-year fix, but … there’s going to be some things that we’re going to push hard on to do quickly, and then we’ll do other things at maybe a year off, and we’ll have other things that will keep going,” Killian said. “Then we’ll be in front of the legislature during session as much as possible to advocate for the funding that we need to take care of the inflationary costs that have just blown up since 2019.”
Before you go
The board of trustees' next regular meeting is slated for Dec. 14 at 6 p.m. in the Mark Henry Administration Building Board Room at 11440 Matzke Road, Cypress.
