Two years after voters turned down a Frisco ISD tax ratification election, the district is calling for another TRE as well as a bond election. This time, however, the district’s combined tax rate could be decreasing.

During an August meeting, FISD board of trustees adopted a tax rate of $1.44 per $100 valuation, 2 cents less than the fiscal year 2017-18 tax rate. Trustees also called for a $691 million bond proposition during an August meeting to fund renovations to aging facilities, construction for new buildings and new technology, among other projects. According to the district, the tax rate is expected to remain the same for the next two to five years.

Both the tax election and the bond will appear on the November ballot for residents living within FISD boundaries. The board had until Aug. 20 to call an election.

Committee co-Chairman Sean Heatley said all the recommendations made to the board during an Aug. 2 meeting revolved around putting FISD’s students’ needs first.

“Whether that be athletics, art, natatorium, baseball, drama, academic decathlon, curriculum, student opportunity was the centerpiece of most of our conversation,” he said.

Frisco ISD’s tax rate is a combination of two tax rates: an interest and sinking tax rate and a maintenance and operations tax rate. The interest and sinking tax rate, which pays for debt from the issuance of bonds, is proposed to decrease by 15 cents this year. In turn, the maintenance and operations tax rate is proposed to increase by 13 cents.

According to state law, an M&O tax rate adopted by a school board that is more than the district’s rollback tax rate must be approved by voters.

FISD called a tax election in 2016 for the first time in its history, proposing to increase the M&O tax rate by 13 cents. Nearly 60 percent of voters turned down the proposal, and the district moved forward with a combined tax rate of $1.46 per $100 valuation.

The difference this year is the I&S tax rate is proposed to decrease as the M&O rate increases. This is what the district calls a tax swap, wherein money from one tax rate is moved to another tax rate.

“[Reducing the tax rate] would make us the second-lowest school district tax rate in Collin County and the fourth-lowest school district rate in Denton County,” FISD Chief Financial Officer Kimberly Smith said.

Smith said the language on the ballot could confuse voters. She said state law requires the proposition to be worded a certain way, obligating the district to add the I&S tax rate in the district’s adopted budget—$0.408 per $100 valuation—with the proposed M&O tax rate—$1.17 per $100 valuation—in the ballot language. This would lead the district to say the tax rate would increase to $1.57 per $100 valuation.

Should voters approve the tax election, the board of trustees would then lower the I&S rate to $0.27 per $100 valuation.

Some of the projects proposed in the possible bond this year include building new schools, acquiring land for future schools and upgrading facilities that were built 25 years ago or more.

Committee co-Chairwoman Debbie Pasha said the proposed projects were all based on the need to accommodate the district’s growth.

More about the bond and tax election can be found on the Frisco homepage at communityimpact.com.