Big_Time_Timmy_Jim said:
I'm in CFISD, married to an ES teacher and in that huge FB group about 'parents for librarians'...it is a massive echo chamber and everyone blames republicans and Abbott. Everyone is begging for raising taxes to save the librarians. If you even begin to point out this is a spending problem years in the making, the massive unnecessary facilities (new admin building and performing arts center), bloated admin salaries or anything else, 18 karens jump your ass.
They are all ok with facilities because "paid by bonds" are different, but fail to realize how the M&O taxrate is impacted with so much of the total having to go to pay debt...
We're going private in the fall.
Not to mention the fact that every one of those new facilities creates added operational costs.
I don't know the current number, but ten years ago I was told every new elementary school adds over a million dollars per year in operational costs - personnel, maintenance, utilities, upkeep - over and above the cost of the facility. Junior Highs and High Schools are significantly more, and these auxillary facilities are no different.
This is what they never mention when pushing these huge bond issues for new schools, athletic facilities, transportion centers, administration complexes, event centers, etc... Yes, the cost of the facilities is covered by the debt service portion of the tax rate, which is accounted for separately from the M&O rate. It still adds to the overall tax rate. And every one of those facilites also adds significant new increases to the M&O rate due to the cost of staffing and operations.