Liberty Hill ISD board adopts proposed 2025–26 budget, approves tax rate and calls Nov. 4 ratification election

Liberty Hill ISD on Aug. 19 adopted a proposed operating budget for the 2025–26 school year and approved a proposed combined property-tax rate of 1.2389 per $100 of assessed value, setting the district on course to place a tax ratification election before voters on Nov. 4, 2025.

Rosanna Guerrero, the district's finance lead who presented the budget during the public hearing, told the board the budget work represents more than eight months of staff and committee efforts and is built around the board's priorities: balance the budget, rebuild the fund balance and restore staff compensation and reduced positions. Guerrero said the district has taken more than $10 million in cuts and realized deficits over the past two years and that the election would generate roughly $10.9 million in net proceeds to reinvest in student programs, safety and staff retention and recruitment. "It was a very collaborative process," Guerrero said during the presentation.

Guerrero outlined why local property-tax collections alone do not guarantee higher school revenue: state law and the Texas funding formula set per-student allotments and mandate annual compression of maintenance-and-operations rates. She said the district is affected by recent state policy changes including higher homestead exemptions and a cap on nonhomestead commercial valuation, and noted Liberty Hill ISD will begin paying state recapture in 2025–26, estimated at about $1.5 million.

Using the district's median home value for 2024 ($469,000), Guerrero illustrated homeowner impact under the proposed rate. With a projected 10% increase in appraised value and an increased homestead exemption of $140,000 (a statewide measure to be decided by other voters), Guerrero said the district's tax example would increase an average homeowner's bill from about $4,324 to about $4,665 per year'an estimated $348 annually, or roughly $29 per month.

Trustees said they appreciated the staff effort and emphasized public education about the stakes of the election. Trustee Brandon Kennedy moved to approve the proposed tax rate tied to a tax ratification election; the board voted aloud, with Kennedy, Kendall Carter, Chris Neighbors, Christie Hargrove, Michael Ferguson and President Megan Parsons recording affirmative votes.

A number of trustees and administrators warned that if voters reject a ratification election, the district would need at least an estimated $4 million in additional cuts to balance the 2026 budget. Guerrero said potential reductions could include delaying opening of planned campuses, shared staff across campuses, reduced transportation routes and further cuts to departmental budgets and extracurricular offerings. "If we start taking out operational loans now, it's gonna impact us for the next 10 to 15 years operationally," she said.

Public comment included a resident question about school-choice impacts on enrollment and a statement from Ed Miller urging trustees to place the measure on the ballot. "Our kids deserve better," Miller said, encouraging the community to support the election.

The board approved the proposed 2025–26 general operating, food-service and debt-service budgets as presented, adopted a maintenance-and-operations rate of 0.7389 and an interest-and-sinking rate of 0.50 (combined 1.2389), and approved an order calling a tax ratification election for Nov. 4, 2025. Administration estimated the election would generate roughly $10.7–$10.9 million in maintenance-and-operations revenue, while also increasing the district's recapture obligation to the state.

The district identified the legal bases it relied on during the presentation and hearing, including the Texas Education Code and the Texas Tax Code, and said public notice of the hearing was published in the Williamson County Sun and posted on the district website.