RISD board approves 2024–25 property tax rate after finance presentation

The Richardson ISD Board of Trustees voted 7–0 to adopt the district's 2024–25 property tax rate following a detailed presentation by David Pate, the district finance presenter. Pate walked trustees through the certified tax roll, the composition of the rate (the maintenance and operations portion and the interest and sinking/debt service portion), and the state calculation that compares the proposed rate to a 'no‑new‑revenue' benchmark.

Pate told the board that the maintenance and operations (M&O) portion presented was 75.52¢ and that the interest‑and‑sinking (debt service) portion is 35¢. He cautioned that state law requires a comparison that can make the adopted rate read as an increase even when the overall rate falls. "While the tax rate's lower, you have to say it's increasing," Pate said, explaining the required statutory calculation under the tax code. After trustee questions about prior estimates and how reappraisals affected the numbers, a trustee moved the motion to adopt the rate and the board approved it on a roll‑call vote 7–0.

The board discussed the numbers publicly in the meeting that fulfilled the required notice and public‑hearing steps. The motion language shown in the meeting packet used the statute‑required phrasing comparing the proposed rate to the no‑new‑revenue tax rate, a calculation Pate described as required under section 26.05 of the Texas Tax Code. The trustees did not alter the staff recommendation and took no additional budget votes at the meeting.

What happens next: the adopted rate and related documentation will be filed consistent with statutory timelines. The board's roll‑call vote was recorded as unanimous in favor.