Rockwall ISD sets proposed tax rate, calls November VATRE and adopts compensation plan contingent on voter approval

The Rockwall Independent School District Board of Trustees on Aug. 18 set a proposed total tax rate that will require a voter approval tax-ratification election in November and approved a compensation schedule that would take effect if voters ratify the rate.

Board President Frank Consselman opened the public hearing on the district's proposed 2025-26 budget and tax rate and turned the presentation to David Carter, who reviewed certified property values, tax-rate compression rules and the district's compensation proposal.

Carter said the district's final certified taxable value rose to about $16.1 billion and that an anticipated homestead-exemption change would reduce the adjusted taxable roll to about $15.4 billion, producing adjusted growth under 2.5 percent and removing the typical maintenance-and-operations (M&O) compression. He summarized the administration's tax recommendation as a proposed M&O rate of 0.7869 and an interest-and-sinking (I&S) rate of 0.28 for a total proposed rate of $1.0669 per $100 of assessed value, a 4-cent net increase from last year's rate of $1.0269. "The average taxes on the average home ... would increase by $160 per year, roughly about $13 a month," Carter said.

The presentation noted the VATRE request is the full 12 cents a district may legally ask voters for on…