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Royse City ISD finance adviser: law changes cut $395M from tax base; district can sell $35M next year but needs $65M later to finish new high school
Summary
Hilltop Securities' Jeff Robert told the Royse City ISD board that 2023 and 2025 homestead-exemption increases reduced the district's taxable value by roughly $395 million and that, under current assumptions and a 50' tax rate, the district could feasibly sell $35 million in bonds next year but would need an additional $65 million later to complete Worthy Fayette High School.
Jeff Robert, the district's municipal adviser from Hilltop Securities, told the Royse City ISD board that recent state homestead-exemption increases and the end of hold-harmless treatment have materially reduced the district's bond capacity.
"Our tax rate is 50¢," Robert said, and he summarized earlier legislation that increased homestead exemptions and limited state hold-harmless payments. He said the district lost roughly $395,000,000 in taxable value this year because of the exemptions and that, without further state assistance, future debt-service costs will fall on local taxpayers.
Robert presented specific issuance options tied to projected growth and timing. He said the district could likely sell about $35,000,000 in bonds "sometime mid to late next year" and would need another approximately $65,000,000 later to finish the new Worthy Fayette High School. He quantified growth scenarios the board would need to reach a $6.1 billion taxable value required for the larger issuance and cautioned that reaching those levels would rely on unusually high growth or a sustained commercial value influx.
Board members asked how commercial projects such as the planned Loews anchor and other local development would affect capacity; Robert responded that commercial values would help but that timing of when those values appear on tax rolls is uncertain. The presentation closed with the adviser's recommendation that the board plan for options that assume constrained capacity while monitoring taxable-value updates in July.
The board did not take a formal vote at the work session; staff will bring scenario options to future meetings after additional community engagement and updated tax-roll information.
