FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
School districts are required by state law to ask voters for permission to sell bonds to investors in order to raise capital dollars to renovate existing buildings or build a new school. Essentially, it’s permission to take out a loan to build and renovate and pay that loan back over an extended period of time, much like a family takes out a mortgage loan for their home or home renovation. A school board calls a bond election so voters can decide whether or not they want to pay for proposed facility projects.
Bonds for school projects are very similar to a home mortgage. To finance construction projects or purchase land, the district borrows funds by selling bonds to investors who will be repaid the amount borrowed plus and interest. Payout is limited by law to 40 years. This bond's payout is expected to occur over 30 years.
Bonds cannot be used for salaries or operating costs such as payroll, utilities, supplies, routine maintenance, fuel, and insurance.
Bond funds can be used to pay for new buildings, additions, and renovations to existing facilities, land acquisition, technology infrastructure for new or existing buildings, and large-ticket items such as school buses. Bonds cannot be used for salaries or operating costs such as payroll, utilities, supplies, routine maintenance, fuel, and insurance.
The Board of Trustees called a bond election in the amount of $98 million to be brought before voters on May 4, 2024.
The District conducted a review and evaluation of current facilities to determine academic and program adequacy as we plan for the future. This review was led by District leadership and aided by demographers, engineers, architects, staff, and general contractors. Additionally, the District reviewed programmatic objectives for current and future academic and co-curricular instructional programs. This review also included the District’s financial position, facility limitations, infrastructure, and student growth projections.
Information regarding the District’s vision, facility capacity, and academic goals was shared, discussed, and analyzed with the District's Board of Trustees and the District Facility Committee. The Facility Committee was composed of 25 members representing a cross-section of the Farmersville community. The entire process helped identify areas deemed the highest priority to be recommended to the Board of Trustees for consideration leading to this called bond election.
A school district’s tax rate is composed of two components or “buckets.” The first bucket is the Maintenance and Operations budget (M&O), which funds daily costs and recurring or consumable expenditures such as teacher and staff salaries, supplies, software, and utilities. The second bucket is the Interest and Sinking budget (I&S), also known as Debt Service, and that is for longer-term capital improvements approved by voters through bond elections. I&S funds cannot by law be used to pay M&O expenses, which means that voter-approved bonds cannot be used to increase teacher salaries, administrator salaries, or pay rising costs for utilities and services.
The proposed tax rate of $1.2417 assumes approval of the May 2024 Bond measure.
No tax increase on homesteads for those with an Age 65 Homestead Exemption Affidavit. The Age 65+ Homestead Exemption must be filed by December 31, 2023 to receive the 2023 rate. Otherwise, those newly applying in 2024 will receive the rate adopted by the school board in August of 2024.
For questions on how to apply for the Age 65+ Homestead Exemption, contact Collin CAD at (469)742-9200 or visit www.collincad.org.
Any registered voter that resides within the school district boundaries.
Most school districts in Texas use bonds to finance renovations, additions, and new facilities. Farmersville ISD does not receive money from the state for the construction of new school buildings or improvements. Since school buildings serve the community for 50 or more years, it is well reasoned that taxpayers would pay for them over a period of 30 years and not from the district’s annual operating budget.
The deadline for voter registration is April 4, 2024. If you are not registered to vote by this deadline, then you are not eligible to vote in this election. You can pick up a registration card from your local post office, or you can register online.
You should receive a Voter Registration Certificate within 30 days. On Election Day, please bring your certificate to your local polling place if you have it. However, all that is required is a valid form of photo ID.
The District will issue bonds to be paid in 30 years.
A specific timeline of projects will be finalized after a successful election. Tentatively, construction of all projects will be completed by the Fall of 2027.
As school districts experience growth, districts are faced with the challenges and opportunities that come with that growth. One such challenge is that attendance rezoning will be required for the 2027-2028 school year. To meet that challenge, District leadership will utilize experienced demographers to develop attendance zones that provide balanced enrollments, reduce overcrowding, and provide equitable access to resources, ensuring every student benefits from the best possible educational environment.
Yes, the Farmersville community passed a bond in 2021 at a rate of 77%. The voter-approved tax rate for that bond was $1.393. Construction of all elements in the 2021 bond are on schedule to be completed by the end of the 2023-2024 school year. The proposed tax rate for the 2024 bond will be $1.2417, $0.1513 less than the approved tax rate in 2021.
The District can only use voter-approved capital project funds (e.g. bond funds) to pay for new buildings, additions, and renovations to existing facilities, land acquisition, technology infrastructure and equipment for new or existing buildings, and large-ticket items such as school buses.
In the summer of 2020, the District completed comprehensive remodels of Farmersville Junior High and Tatum Elementary. Additionally, with the 2021 bond proceeds, Farmersville High School and Farmersville Intermediate received interior improvements and renovations.
The amount of bonding capacity a district has is directly tied to the property value within the district’s boundary. As the District’s property value increases, the District has greater financial capacity for capital projects.
Starting in the summer of 2020, the District developed a strategic growth plan that outlines the actions that have been taken and will be taken to address facility needs now and in the future. Additionally, all facility upgrades and expansions are contingent upon student enrollment, property values, and tax impact. The Strategic Growth Plan can be reviewed here.The District has the authority to set the tax rate. Determining property values is not a function of the ISD. The voter-approved tax rate for the 2021 bond was $1.393. The proposed tax rate for the 2024 bond will be $1.2417, $0.1513 less than the approved tax rate in 2021.
Typically, school districts have a much larger territorial boundary (and therefore a larger tax base) than cities. Farmersville ISD has the authority to levy ad valorem taxes on virtually all taxable property within the City of Farmersville because almost 99% of the City lies within the District’s boundaries. All taxable property outside of the City limits that lie within the 89.18 square mile territorial boundary of the District are subject to taxation by the District. Essentially, Farmersville ISD has a much larger tax base than the City of Farmersville.
Yes. Residents who purchase a homestead in Lakehaven will pay taxes to Farmersville ISD. Any residents who live in future developments that are located in Farmersville ISD's territorial boundary will also pay taxes to FISD.