The Katy ISD Board of Trustees has called a public hearing to receive input on its proposed budget and tax rate for the upcoming fiscal year.
During this week’s school board meeting, trustees formally approved publication of a mandatory notice informing residents the district will hold the meeting on Aug. 20 in the board room of the Education Support Complex.
Katy ISD CFO Bill Moore said the district plans no change in the current tax rates for the upcoming budget year.
The district’s tax rate will remain at $1.1266 for maintenance and operations and .40 for debt service.
The maintenance and operations budget funds most of the district’s daily operations, while the debt service tax rate pays for the district’s long-term debt.
In announcing the rates, Moore stressed the district’s tax rate had been the same “for the past 5 or 6 years.”
Trustee Dr. Bill Proctor noted the debt service rate of 40-cents was lower than projected when the district promoted its most recent bond issue. When the bond issue was initially discussed, the district had projected the debt service could rise as high as 43-cents for the 2012-13 budget year.
The school district’s new budget year will begin Oct. 1.
It seems the combination of an expanding tax base coupled with lower interest rates on our debt helps.