Chapel Hill ISD board adopts 2025 tax rate; M&O drops while property values push effective revenue up

Chapel Hill Independent School District trustees voted unanimously to adopt the district's 2025 tax rate after a public hearing and staff presentation. Administration presented an M&O (maintenance and operations) rate of 0.6929 and an interest-and-sinking (I&S) rate of 0.38; those two rates combine to the district's total tax rate. The board approved the rate by motion and unanimous vote.

Dr. McLean, who presented the hearing materials, explained why the numbers look paradoxical: "The motion of the board will note a 2.28% increase because property values have increased from 1 year to the next," he said, while also noting the district's M&O rate is down by roughly 3.25¢ from the prior year. He told trustees the voter-approval rate (which accounts for state aid) is the operative ceiling for the board's proposal and that state offsets replace dollars reduced by tax compression. The administration also noted that assessed property values are set by an appraisal entity outside the district, which affects the effective revenue collected.

Board members asked clarifying questions about the percent figures; administration pointed to recent legislative changes that require the district to present both the "no new revenue" and "voter approval" calculations and explained that the reported 2.28% effective increase reflects higher appraisals rather than a higher tax rate for taxpayers. The board adopted the tax rate as presented; the motion and vote were recorded during the open session.