A TRE is a special election, called by the Fort Worth ISD Board of Trustees, asking the voters to approve a Maintenance and Operations (M&O) tax rate above the threshold that requires voters to approve the new rate.

Fort Worth ISD must hold a Tax Ratification Election (TRE) when it adopts a M&O tax rate above $0.9764.  Fort Worth ISD is asking voters to approve a new M&O tax rate of $1.0864 (per $100 valuation), which will result in an additional $66 million for the school district to better serve our students.

Our world and how we teach our students have both changed tremendously in the last few months.  We strive to ensure that every student in FWISD will have all the necessary tools they need to achieve success.  If the voters approve the TRE, we will focus these funds on the following priorities:

• Campus safety and security – maintaining a safe and healthy learning environment for students, teachers and administrators is of the utmost importance for FWISD. Training, equipment, appropriate resources and support are all needed to provide physical, social and emotional safety for our campuses.
• Technology and connectivity – every student deserves access to the tools that are needed to provide the proper opportunity for academic success. Technology equipment, connectivity, security and online instruction programs are all variables in the formula allowing all students equitable opportunity to achieve their potential.
• Teacher recruitment and retention – we all want the very best teachers providing instruction for tomorrow’s leaders and we must work hard to provide competitive compensation packages for our teachers. It is these very educators who provide positive influence and the love of learning that prepare our students on a journey to lifelong learning.  Currently, FWISD ranks 24^th among school districts in the DFW Metroplex.

FWISD is asking voters to decide on a tax ratification for the maintenance and operations (M&O) portion of the tax rate, which funds salaries, utilities and day-to-day operations that directly support campuses. If the voters support this initiative, the total proposed tax rate for homeowners would be adjusted from $1.28 to $1.37 (per $100 value).

The TRE, if passed, would result in an additional 11 cents for every $100 dollars in property value. For the average homeowner in FWISD this equates to an additional $157 dollars per year or about $0.43, which is less than a cup of coffee, per day.

Residents who have already received an “Age 65 or Older” or “Disabled” exemption which has resulted in a freeze of their taxes will incur NO tax impact on their homestead as a result of an approved TRE in November 2020.

If the Voter Approval TRE passes, the new funding will be available to serve students during the current fiscal year.

The District would want to develop a collaborative process involving teachers and other stakeholders with a goal of developing a plan to allocate resources to best meet the needs of both teachers and students.  Given that FWISD will be almost halfway through the current school year before we have the election results, upon receipt of voter approval, it would be our goal to develop a plan that could be implemented next summer for the 2021-2022 school year.

$25.60MM - Facilities Upgrades - new HVAC systems, Elementary playgrounds, upgrades to extra-curricular facilities

$12.80MM - Technology – devices, software and infrastructure for students and teachers

$  2.40MM – Furniture and Equipment – campuses and Career Technology Program equipment

$  2.20MM – Fine Arts and Athletics – fine arts and athletic uniforms, instruments and equipment

$  0.75MM – Campus Security Upgrades – Security cameras and communications systems

$  0.75MM – Transportation – vehicle replacement and infrastructure

$44.50MM

The state leadership has directed Texas Education Agency to use the CARES Act funding to reduce funding the State of Texas would otherwise provide to Texas public school districts. The state funding that normally comes to Fort Worth ISD through the state funding system has been reduced dollar for dollar by the amount of the federal CARES Act funding.   Therefore, Fort Worth ISD and other Texas public school districts are forced to use the CARES Act funding to support day to day operations – not PPE and mobile devices.

The taxes paid by local property owners are a part of the state funding system developed by the Texas Legislature.  The system is structured by the Legislature to place a significant part of the funding responsibility on local property owners.  The system also adjusts the state’s portion of the responsibility up or down based on student enrollment and local property values.  The proposal before the voters provides a mechanism in which the state will add to the funding provided by local taxpayers about fifty cents for each dollar of additional local tax.  Those additional state dollars would not otherwise flow into our community.