McKinney ISD postpones special election until 2021

McKinney ISD will not send voters to ballot box in May to decide how the district pays recapture payments.

Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the district voted April 28 to postpone the election until May 2021.

The special election would originally have been held May 2 for voters to decide whether to pay the recapture payment through purchasing attendance credits. Recapture payments are used to redistribute funds from property-wealthy districts to those that are not as wealthy to encourage equity among schools. The district has been paying its recapture fees this way since 2014-15, a process allowed as long as the amount of state aid received exceeded its recapture payment.

However, House Bill 3 passed during 2019’s state legislative session required the district to hold an election to decide how the recapture fee is paid. This new requirement has been waived in light of the virus.

The Texas Education Agency requested the office of Gov. Greg Abbott to suspend parts of the Texas Education Code and rules for the 2019-20 school year due to the pandemic. The governor's office agreed, as long as affected school districts agree to a reduction in state aid in the amount necessary to offset the local revenue. Districts should also reschedule the election for November 2020 or May 2021, according to meeting documents. MISD opted to have its election in May 2021.

"We will have to call the election again in January just like we did this year," the district's chief financial officer Jason Bird said. "The TEA is giving us a waiver and allowing us to net our recapture payment for this year."