Hays CISD voters to decide on 12-cent tax rate increase aimed at teacher pay, inflation
HAYS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) – For the first time, Hays Consolidated Independent School District voters will consider a tax rate increase.
Officials said the 12-cent increase is needed to offset inflation, boost teachers’ salaries, cover rising utility costs and other district operation expenses.
“With inflation in the state not keeping pace with revenue increases for our basic allotment over the last three legislative sessions, we felt that it was time to [ask] our local constituents to support the school district,” Hays CISD Superintendent Eric Wright said.
Wright said if it passes, “it would generate an additional $26 million a year. Immediately, we would provide pay increases to those staff members who weren’t acknowledged by the state.”
State lawmakers recently approved a school funding package that was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott in early June. The $8.5 billion bill created a new bucket of money for public schools to spend on specific initiatives.
Lawmakers set aside $4.2 billion for teacher pay raises. The exact amount of the “Teacher Retention Allotment” is determined by the number of students enrolled in a district and a teacher’s years of experience.
“That was desperately needed, and thankful for that,” Wright said. “Unfortunately, that money just flows to us, the employee. And we don’t see that in a cost-of-living increase for our basic allotment.”
In Texas, the basic allotment is an apportionment of funds from the general revenue funds that goes to each school district to provide a basic level of education for the district’s residents, according to the Texas Education Agency.
Hays CISD reported that the basic allotment – $6,160 per student annually – remained the same from 2019 to 2025. This session, it was bumped up by an additional $55 a year. In explaining the tax rate increase, the district said it was not enough.
For a homeowner with a taxable property value of $400,000, the proposed 12-cent tax rate increase would add about $480 a year in school district taxes. According to Zillow, the average Hays County home is valued at around $370,000.
