Austin ISD trustees call $2.439 billion bond election after public testimony on equity and school rebuilds

The Austin Independent School District board of trustees on Aug. 11 voted unanimously to adopt an order calling a Nov. 2022 uniform election to authorize up to $2,439,000,000 in unlimited-tax bonds, after about 24 members of the public spoke in person or by recorded message about equity, school rebuilds and funding for special-education safety measures.

The bond package was presented by interim Superintendent Doctor Mays and district staff as a revised proposal that builds on the bond steering committee's equity-by-design recommendations and would include major investments in historically underserved and Title I campuses while also adding projects the administration recommended. Trustees and dozens of public speakers framed the vote around equity, historic disinvestment and the need to preserve the bond steering committee's work.

Trustee Foster moved the resolution and Trustee Wagner seconded it. During the district presentation, Chief of Operations Matias Sigur described an updated proposal and named specific allocations, and Chief Financial Officer Ed Ramos outlined debt restructuring and the district's plan to use portions of fund balance to increase capacity while keeping the proposed debt-service tax increase to one cent. The board's vote adopted the motion as moved by Foster, seconded by Wagner, and approved by all trustees present.

Public testimony that preceded the action included parents, teachers and community members who urged the board to keep the bond steering committee (BSC) recommendations intact and to prioritize investments in historically underserved schools. Valerie Teriros, identified as a parent, AISD alum and member of the bond steering committee, told trustees, "a bond that's not centered in equity cannot pass." April Clark, a member of the bond steering equity advisory and co‑chair of the facilities long‑range planning committee, said the committee selected schools for modernization based on communities identified by the district's Office of Equity.

Several speakers asked the board to keep a camera funding line specifically for eligible special-education classrooms. Parent Tana Celeste described a personal restraint incident involving her son and said the bond steering committee had designated $1,200,000 for special-education cameras; she said that funding had been moved to an undesignated SPED fund and urged that cameras be specifically funded.

District staff presented project-level figures during the board presentation. Matias Sigur said the revised proposal built on bond package B and cited full allocations of $115,600,000 for LBJ High School, $116,000,000 for Northeast Early College High School and $157,000,000 for Burnet (Burnett) Middle School. Sigur and Ramos also said the district identified roughly $189,000,000 in opportunities in the portfolio and described a total revised package of about $2.44 billion during the presentation; the motion on the floor and the order the board adopted used a total of $2,439,000,000.

Ed Ramos told the board the proposal would require a one‑cent increase on the debt‑service portion of the property tax rate if the bond passes, but the district expects to propose an overall tax rate of 99.66 cents in September — which staff said would be the district's lowest overall tax rate in 21 years — and projected a net total tax‑rate reduction over two years (6.5 cents this year and a 3‑cent reduction next year, for a combined 9.5 cents) even if voters approve the bond. Ramos gave a simple example: a house with a $600,000 value would pay about $60 more per year under the one‑cent debt‑service increase (not accounting for homestead exemptions).

Trustees also directed follow‑up work. President Rodriguez said the board would continue to pursue specific commitments on worker protections, green building standards, electric buses and full hub/historically underutilized business inclusion; the governance committee will return with recommended language and next steps for board consideration. Trustee comments at the vote emphasized the board's expectation that the bond be implemented to deliver the equity outcomes the BSC and long‑range planning committee recommended.

The board adopted an order calling the bond election by voice vote after Trustee Foster made the motion and Trustee Wagner seconded it; the motion "passes by all those on the dais," according to the meeting record. The next steps are: the district will finalize the order and election materials for the Nov. 2022 uniform election; the governance committee will bring back proposed commitments on worker and environmental protections; and the district will begin public outreach and voter education leading up to the election.

Where possible, the article sticks to statements in the meeting record. When presenters gave differing totals during discussion, the article reports both figures as they were stated at the meeting (the administration presentation cited about $2.44 billion; the motion and adopted order used $2,439,000,000).