The Northwest ISD's voter-approval tax rate election failed in all three counties, according to data released from the Wise, Tarrant and Denton Counties election office.
The latest numbers show 31,530 voters said yes to the VATRE, or 44.17%. However, 39,865 voters said no to the VATRE, or 55.83%.
“The district will consider class size changes in line with neighboring districts. Northwest ISD will continue to advocate for Texas to adequately fund public schools,” the school said in a social media post Nov. 6.
In Wise County, 65.60% voted against the tax increase to help the school offset a deficit budget. The most votes came from Denton County, with 35,313, but had a failed a margin of 8.7%.
Posted 10:14 p.m., Nov. 5
Another batch of updates hasn't been favorable for Northwest ISD's voter-approval tax rate election.
The latest numbers show 26,751 voters said yes to the VATRE, or 45.07% of the votes. However, 30,164 voters have said no to the VATRE, or 54.93% of the votes.
Posted 9:31 p.m., Nov. 5
With updates coming in from Tarrant, Wise and Denton Counties, the Northwest ISD's voter-approval tax rate election gained a little ground since the early voting numbers came out.
The latest numbers show 26,237 voters said yes to the VATRE, or 44.21% of the votes. On the other side, 33,106 voters have said no, or 55.79% of the votes.
Posted 7:34 p.m., Nov. 5
Early results are not favorable for Northwest ISD’s voter-approval tax rate election, which would generate nearly $16 million for the 2024-25 school year. The election comes on the heels of NISD trustees adopting a deficit budget of $15.8 million for the 2024-25 school year.
What you need to know
So far, the VATRE proposition has received 26,190 votes in favor, or about 44.18% of the vote, and 33,094 votes against, about 55.82% of the vote, according to early voting results from three counties.
This story will be updated as results from the November 2024 general election are released.
All results are unofficial until canvassed. Visit communityimpact.com/voter-guide/election-results to see results from all local elections in your community.
On the ballot
According to district documents, state funding for school districts has not been updated since 2019. Since then, inflation has increased just over 20%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which has caused multimillion-dollar budget shortfalls in school districts across Texas. Though the state legislature approved $4 billion in new funding for public schools in 2023, state officials have not provided those funds to public schools.
The proposition on the ballot reads: "Ratifying the ad valorem tax rate of $1.1179 per $100 valuation in Northwest Independent School District for the current year, a rate that will result in an increase of 4.29% in maintenance and operations tax revenue for the district for the current year as compared to the preceding year, which is an additional $13,849,486."
The district website states the ballot language does not mention the 3-cent increase in the maintenance and operations tax rate that the VATRE is requesting. The $1.1179 references the total tax rate, not the proposed increase, which would be the 3 cents mentioned above.
Zooming in
District documents state if the VATRE is approved by voters this fall, the district’s maintenance and operations, or M&O, tax rate would increase by 3 cents. Therefore, a $500,000 home in the district would receive an annual property tax increase of $120—or $10 a month.
The district has a tax calculator on its VATRE website where district residents can figure out exactly how much their taxes will be affected based upon the value of their home.
Stay tuned
According to the district website, school districts across the state have begun increasing class sizes, reducing staff and eliminating programs because of a lack of funding. NISD has been able to delay these actions through prudent financial management. However, if budget shortfalls continue, the district may consider the following options:
- Increasing the number of students per class
- Eliminating some academic and extracurricular student programs
- Eliminating teacher/staff positions that both directly and indirectly support students
