Editor's note: The district has updated its estimate of the amount of money the voter-approval tax rate election would raise.
Although Georgetown ISD trustees passed a balanced budget for the upcoming school year, it doesn’t include raises for employees. Now, the district has asked voters to approve a higher tax rate that would fund $8.4 million in pay raises.
“There are no other discussions regarding the $8.4 million other than making pay for every employee of Georgetown very competitive compared to our surrounding school districts,” GISD Superintendent Devin Padavil said. “We just fundamentally believe the most important thing to do for a child is have an effective teacher in every classroom.”
The overview
The GISD board of trustees unanimously voted Aug. 17 to call for a voter-approval tax rate election, or VATRE, that will appear on the Nov. 3 ballot. Prior to this vote, the district took several steps toward calling a VATRE, including public input meetings and a state-mandated financial audit.
District officials are asking voters to increase the overall tax rate from $1.0506 to $1.1106 per $100 valuation, which would raise $8.4 million in additional revenue.
The combined tax rate comprises a maintenance and operations rate—which funds everyday costs, such as salaries—and an interest and sinking rate, which raises revenue to pay the district’s debt. The proposed rate includes a $0.03 reduction of the I&S rate and a $0.09 increase of the M&O rate.
For the median homeowner with a homestead exemption, this would amount to about $7.97 more in annual property taxes, according to district documents.
Georgetown ISD’s last tax rate election was approved by 59% of voters in 2012, increasing the M&O tax rate from $1.04 to $1.08 per $100 of property valuation.
The breakdown
Under the district’s approved balanced budget, only select staff received pay raises, including those previously paid far below market rates and teachers who reached specific tenure levels.
District leaders opted to use additional revenue toward covering the rising cost of healthcare.
Now, both Superintendent Devin Padavil and board President Michael Scherer said any funds raised by the VATRE would go toward pay raises for staff, unless changes at the state level affected how the district could use the money. If the VATRE passes in November, the district will retroactively pay employees beginning in August.
Padavil said he has spoken to GISD teachers who are struggling to save while paying for median apartments in the area. Additionally, Scherer said he has noticed an increase in applications from areas with a lower cost of living, such as Jarrel and Thrall.
“All of these funds are dedicated to increasing compensation for teachers and staff across the school district,” Padavil said.
While the tax rate increase will raise $17.4 million, $9 million will be sent to the state as part of recapture, according to the district’s website.
The 8.4 million in revenue would fund:
- 3% increase for teachers, which translates to a minimum of a $2,300 raise for teachers
- 3% increase for other staff
- $2,000 increase in pay for starting teachers, bumping these staff members up to $59,000
The local impact
Melinda Brasher, GISD’s executive director of community engagement and communications, said the VATRE will have a smaller impact on homeowners’ annual tax bills due to declining property values in Georgetown.
While the district’s overall tax rate would increase, the average property value in Georgetown ISD has fallen from $461,094 in 2025 to $444,465 in 2026, according to district documents.
During the July 27 workshop, district officials presented the results of a community survey showing initial support for a $0.09 tax rate increase at 48%, which rose to 58% after further information was provided through the survey.
On Aug. 3, Georgetown resident Ronald Swaine said he’s confident in the board’s leadership and sees the VATRE as an investment in Georgetown's future.
“One of the major concerns I had years ago was the performance of our students at GISD,” Swaine said. “We had schools that were failing or getting D grades. ... That has turned around. To me, that is an indication that focus and attention is paid to how our students are doing. The next level is what are we doing for our teachers and staff?”
Assessing the need
The district has eliminated over $8 million in expenditures over the past two years, Padavil said, adding that $1.3 million of the cuts were related to administrative costs. If the VATRE passes, he said he does not anticipate bringing back those expenditures since the district runs a “lean” budget.
Padavil and Scherer said other reductions included cutting software programs used by teachers as classroom resources, reducing transportation, changing school start times, and increasing class sizes at middle and high schools.
If the VATRE fails, GISD officials said they would have to call for a budget amendment and potentially make additional cuts.
Earlier this year, the district announced that two new schools would not open this fall and pushed their opening timeline to August 2027, a decision Padavil said was guided by budget constraints.
"There is no more water to squeeze out of this rock,” Padavil said during the board’s Aug. 3 meeting.
Looking ahead
Neighboring school districts are also navigating financial constraints. Leander ISD and Round Rock ISD also called tax rate elections. Pflugerville ISD adopted a budget with a $15.6 million shortfall, while Liberty Hill ISD is navigating how to address a $1.9 million shortfall for its debt service fund.
An April survey by the Texas Association of School Business Officials found that over 80% of public school districts will need to make cuts, with 37% reporting they will need to make “significant” cuts.
Scherer said state policy, including the upcoming state legislative session, is the biggest factor in future budgets.
“Our biggest wildcard isn’t managing our finances or managing our budget,” Scherer said. “The thing we have zero control over is what the state chooses to do.”
The VATRE will appear on the Nov. 3 ballot as Georgetown Independent School District Proposition A.
