[3. Call Meeting to Order ]
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UH, MARCH 16TH, GOVERNOR GREG ABBOTT, GRANTED THE REQUEST FROM HIM, THE NUMBER OF OPEN MEETING LAWS TO THE EXTENT NECESSARY TO ALLOW TELEPHONIC AND VIDEO CONFERENCES, SETTINGS, AND FIELDS.THIS ORDER IS EFFECTIVE TO ME.
WE'RE USING ZOOM SOFTWARE THAT ACCOMMODATES 1000 INDIVIDUALS.
IF YOU HAVE ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS, PLEASE CONTACT YOU.
AT THIS TIME, I WILL ENSURE THAT I'LL TAKE ROLL.
MS. DAVIS, MR. STEVENSON, MR. SMITH.
MS. MAYS, THIS ABSENT MYSELF HERE.
A QUORUM HAS BEEN ESTABLISHED AT THIS TIME.
WE'LL MOVE ON TO OUR AGENDA AT THIS TIME.
JENNIFER, DO WE HAVE ANY CITIZENS COMING HERE? OKAY.
[6. Action Item ]
NEXT ON.THE AGENDA WILL BE, UM, IF THERE'S AN ACTION ITEM DISCUSSION TO CONSIDER THEIR APPROVAL, IT WAS THE, EXCUSE ME, THE SET, THE, AND THEN, UM, TODAY WE ARE, UH, UM, AS OF LAST WEEK WHEN WE PRESENTED THE TAX INFORMATION TO THE SCHOOL BOARD YESTERDAY, OUR BUDGET COMMITTEE MET TO REVIEW THAT AGAIN, MS. PORPHYRY IS HERE TODAY TO PRESENT SOME INFORMATION.
UH, WE LEFT THE MEDIA YESTERDAY, UM, ARE A COUPLE OF OPTIONS.
UM, AND WE'VE DONE THE BEST WE COULD WITH THAT AND, UH, SPOKEN WITH OUR FINANCIAL ADVISORS AND TRYING TO GET THAT TOGETHER.
AND MS. PUMPER IS HERE TO, UH, PRESENT THAT INFORMATION TODAY AND I'LL TURN IT OVER TO HER GOOD EVENING.
MADAM PRESIDENT, SUPERINTENDENT HERRERA, DISTINGUISHED TRUSTEES THIS EVENING, I'M BRINGING FORTH AND REQUESTING THAT THE BOARD APPROVE AN ORDINANCE TO ADOPT OUR 2021 TAX RATE, WHATEVER THAT MAY BE.
HOPEFULLY WE CAN WALK OUT OF HERE WITH, UM, WITH SOMETHING TO BE ABLE TO MOVE FORWARD HERE, UM, AS REQUESTED YESTERDAY EVENING, AND THERE'S A BIGGER, UM, A LARGER COPY, UH, IT SHOULD BE AT YOUR DESK SO YOU CAN SEE IT.
I DID OUTLINE, UH, THREE OPTIONS FOR THE DISTRICT, UH, OPTION A IS THE, UM, TAX RATE THAT WE PRESENTED AT THE BOARD MEETING LAST WEEK ON THE 26TH THAT, UH, FINANCE AND THE, UM, SUPERINTENDENT BASED ON, UM, YOU KNOW, OUR OATH AND RESPONSIBILITIES TO BE GOOD STEWARDS OF THE TAXPAYERS' DOLLARS AND MAKE SURE WE'RE PUTTING THE DISTRICT IN THE BEST, UH, FINANCIAL POSITION TO MEET THE NEEDS OF OUR STUDENTS AND STAFF AND PREPARE US FOR THE FUTURE AS FAR AS, UH, GROWTH AND MAINTAINING OUR FACILITIES AND BEING PREPARED FOR ANY NEEDS, UH, THAT THE DISTRICT MAY HAVE IN THIS TIME OF UNCERTAINTY, UM, WITH THE ECONOMY JUST WHEN WE SEE OPPORTUNITIES TO MAKE SURE, UH, WE'RE LEVERAGING THAT AND, UH, PUTTING THE DISTRICT IN THE BEST POSITION.
AND WITH THAT IN CONSIDERATION, UH, WE DID RECOMMEND TO THE BOARD, UH, LAST WEEK OPTION A, WHICH IS, UH, THE VOTER APPROVED TAX RATE OF 1.4704.
AND THAT CONSISTS OF A 1.0 3, 2 9 MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS TAX RATE AND AN INTEREST IN SINKING TAX RATE, A 0.4, 3 7 5.
AND, UM, THAT RATE TAKES INTO ACCOUNT THE DISTRICTS.
UM, MY RECOMMENDATION FOR THE DISTRICT TO PRE-PAY $2.4 MILLION OF OUR LONG-TERM DEBT OBLIGATIONS, WHICH WOULD SAVE THE DISTRICT $2 MILLION IN INTEREST SAVINGS, AND ALSO HELP US TO BUILD A BOND CAPACITY, UH, FOR ANY FUTURE NEEDS, UH, THAT THE DISTRICT MAY HAVE.
UH, OUR SECOND OPTION IS OPTION B, WHICH WAS THE REVISED, UH, VOTER APPROVED TAX RATE.
ONCE WE WENT IN AND, UH, REMOVE THE $2.4 MILLION PREPAYMENT.
UM, AND SO KIND OF HERE, YOU'LL SEE WHAT WE'VE ALREADY ADOPTED THE BUDGET FOR THE YEAR FOR DEBT SERVICES.
SO, UM, IF THE BOARD, UH, WERE TO, TO MOVE
[00:05:01]
AND, UH, GO WITH THIS PARTICULAR OPTION, THEN I WOULD SUBMIT A BUDGET AMENDMENT TO REDUCE THE REVENUES.AND THEN ALSO TO, UM, ELIMINATE THE 2.4 MILLION, UH, FROM THE DEBT, UH, EXPENDITURE BUDGET.
AND SO, UM, WITH THAT OPTION, WE WILL BE LOOKING, YOU KNOW, AT A $470,000, UH, USE OF OUR FUND BALANCE, UH, TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THAT PARTICULAR OPTION IN THE ZERO PREPAYMENT.
UM, AND WE WOULD NOT BE SAVING THE DISTRICT, UM, ANY MONEY IN THE, UM, AS AN OUTLINE YESTERDAY.
AND I BELIEVE I HAVE IT IN THERE AT THAT PARTICULAR RATE, THE TAXPAYER'S ANNUAL, UM, TAX BILL WOULD INCREASE, I BELIEVE IT WAS, UH, $35.
AND SO, UM, UNDER OPTION A THEIR BILL WOULD INCREASE $145, I BELIEVE, UH, ANNUALLY.
SO AROUND 12, $13 A MONTH, COMPARED TO THE $3 A MONTH ON OPTION C IS, UM, THE COMPROMISE WE DISCUSSED YESTERDAY, IF WE WERE TO ONLY PRE-K A MILLION DOLLARS OF DEBT.
UH, SO TO GO BACK INTO THE TAX CALCULATION, CALCULATION WORKSHEET AND PUT IN, UM, A TOTAL OF A MILLION DOLLAR PAYMENT IN DEBT, WE'D BE LOOKING AT A TAX RATE OF 1.4, 2 72.
UM, ONCE AGAIN, I WOULD GO IN AND AMEND THE REVENUE BUDGET DOWN BY THE 1.4 AND THEN REDUCE, UH, THE DEBT EXPENDITURE BUDGET BY THE 1.465.
UM, SO WE WOULD BASICALLY ONLY BE PRE PEEP PREPAYING, A MILLION DOLLARS, WHICH WOULD SAVE THE DISTRICT $920,000, UM, IN FUTURE INTEREST COSTS.
AND FOR THAT, WE WOULD BE LOOKING AT A REDUCTION IN OUR FUND BALANCE AROUND 360,000, UH, WHICH IS SLIGHTLY MORE, UH, THAN THE USE OF OUR FUND BALANCE IN OPTION A, BUT IN OPTION A WE WOULD BE, UM, HAVE THE ABILITY TO SAY THE DISTRICT $2 MILLION AS OPPOSED TO $920,000.
SO THOSE WERE THE OPTIONS WE LOOKED AT.
I'VE SHARED EMAILS WITH OUR BOND ADVISORS, AND SINCE WE'VE, THE BOARD HAS ALREADY APPROVED THE $2.4 MILLION PREPAYMENT, UH, THAT'S ALREADY BEEN APPROVED.
SO THEY SAID IT WOULD BE ACCEPTABLE, UH, TO AMEND THAT RESOLUTION AT THE SEPTEMBER BOARD MEETING, UH, TO REDUCE THAT AMOUNT DOWN TO 1 MILLION, IF THAT'S WHAT THE BOARD DESIRED, BUT RIGHT NOW ALL THE PAPERWORK AND EVERYTHING READS THE $2.4 MILLION.
SO HERE, UM, IS OPTION A, WHICH WAS PRESENTED LAST WEEK, THE ORIGINAL RECOMMENDATION OF THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT OPTION B, WHICH WAS THE 1.3 9, 7, 7 WITH ZERO PREPAYMENT.
AND WE HAVE OPTION A C FORGOT, PUTTING A C UP THERE, WHICH IS THE, UM, THE 1.4272, WHICH HAS THE $1 MILLION PREPAYMENT IN IT.
SO THOSE ARE THE THREE OPTIONS.
UM, THE NEXT STEPS WOULD BE FOR THE BOARD TO VOTE, HOPEFULLY ON ONE OF THOSE THREE.
UM, AS I SAID, I RECOMMEND, UH, A, UM, AT THAT PARTICULAR POINT, WE WOULD SEND THE ORDINANCE TO DALLAS COUNTY TAX ASSESSOR SO THEY CAN GET GOING ON PREPARING, UH, WHAT THEY NEED TO DO.
AND THEN I HAVE THE DOCUMENTS THAT WERE SIGNED, UH, BY THE BOARD PRESIDENT AND SECRETARY LAST WEEK, I WOULD FEDEX THOSE OVER.
I HAVE NOT SENT THOSE DOCUMENTS OVER BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T, UM, YOU KNOW, COME TO A RESOLUTION, UM, ON OPTION B.
UM, IF WE DECIDE THE BOARD DECIDES THAT OPTION, UM, THAT OBVIOUSLY EXCLUDES THE $2.4 MILLION DEBT PAYMENT, YOU WOULD APPROVE THAT ORDINANCE.
UH, WE'LL SEND THAT OVER TO COUNTY SO THEY CAN ONCE AGAIN, GET GOING AND DO THE THINGS THAT THEY NEED TO DO.
AND WE MEET OUR DEADLINES PER THE INTER LOCAL AGREEMENT.
UH, I WOULD ASK THE BOARD AT THE SEPTEMBER MEETING TO RESEND THE RESOLUTION, AUTHORIZING THE DEBT PREPAYMENT, AND THEN I WOULD DO THE VARIOUS, UH, BUDGET AMENDMENTS TO REDUCE THE DEBT REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE BUDGETS, UM, UNDER OPTION C UH, THE REVISED, UH, VOTER APPROVED TAX RATE WITH THE $1 MILLION DEBT PREPAYMENT.
AS I MENTIONED EARLIER AT THE SEPTEMBER BOARD MEETING, UM, I WOULD ASK THE BOARD TO AMEND THAT RESOLUTION, TAKING IT FROM A $2.4 MILLION PREPAYMENT TO A $1 MILLION, UH, PREPAYMENT AND GET ALL OF THAT SENT OFF.
AND THEN, UM, YOU KNOW, DO THE CORRESPONDING AMENDMENTS, UH, THAT WOULD GO ALONG WITH THAT OPTION.
AND I'LL TAKE ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD AT THIS TIME.
YOU MENTIONED AN A AND B, YOU GAVE US A LOW ESTIMATE OF WHAT THE INCREASE WOULD BE ANNUALLY FOR TAXPAYERS.
UM, DID YOU SAY IT FOR C, FOR C? IT WOULD BE, UM, 80, ROUGHLY
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$80 A YEAR OR $7 PER MONTH AND A 1.4, 5% EFFECTIVE TEXTS INCREASE.AND THEN AN ADDITIONAL QUESTION.
IF WE WERE TO PAY FOR SAY HOW YOU'RE CLOSING DURING THE PREPAYMENT AT 1 MILLION, HOW WOULD THAT AFFECT US PAYING OFF OUR DEBT IN THE FUTURE THAT, UM, BASICALLY REDUCE THE PRINCIPAL AMOUNT OWED.
AND SO THAT GENERATES THE INTEREST SAVINGS AND EACH TIME THAT WE'RE ABLE TO PREPAY THAT OUR DEBT TO STUDENT RATIO, YOU KNOW, IS IMPROVED AND OUR OVERALL DEBT RATIO IS IMPROVED AS FAR AS THE FUTURE, THAT'S BASICALLY WE'RE SAVING INTEREST DOLLARS AND BUILDING ADDITIONAL CAPACITY.
SO IN THE FUTURE, UM, YOU KNOW, WITH THE VARIOUS THINGS HAPPENING TO OUR FACILITIES AND, UM, YOU KNOW, IF YOU HAD TO BUILD A NEW SCHOOL OR DO SOME MAJOR, UM, YOU KNOW, REMODEL OR SOMETHING OF THAT NATURE, UM, IF WE CAN APPROVE, WE WOULD GET A HIGHER, UM, RATING, YOU KNOW, IT CAN IMPROVE OUR MOODY'S RATING AND GET BETTER, UM, RATES.
WHEN WE DO GO OUT FOR A BOND, WE IMPROVE IN OUR CREDIT STANDING, UH, WHERE WE'RE REDUCING OUR OVERALL DEBT.
I MEAN, RIGHT NOW WE'RE KIND OF MAXED OUT, YOU KNOW, FROM A DEBT PERSPECTIVE, CAUSE WE'RE AT 13.8 AND THEN, UM, IN THE NEXT YEAR THAT'LL BE GOING UP TO 14.3 MILLION AND THEY'LL BE FIXED THERE FOR LIKE 10 YEARS.
SO, UM, THAT'S KINDA THE MOTIVATION TO KIND OF TRY TO PAY THAT DOWN WHILE WE'RE ABLE TO, UH, BEFORE, YOU KNOW, WE HIT A RECESSION OR, YOU KNOW, THINGS OF THAT NATURE HAPPENED, OR, YOU KNOW, MAYBE SOME OF THE WAREHOUSES CLOSE AND DIFFERENT THINGS THAT ARE GENERATING, YOU KNOW, A LARGER SOURCE OF OUR TAX BASE.
UM, WE WOULDN'T BE IN A POSITION, YOU KNOW, THEN TO DO ANYTHING LIKE THAT.
AND THE WAY WHEN THEY STRUCTURED THESE BONDS, THEY DID IT WITH THE INTENTION OF US HAVING THE ABILITY TO PREPAY, UM, YOU KNOW, AS WE GO AND WE WERE ABLE TO, AND WE, THE LAST PREPAYMENT WAS IN 2018.
AND SO NOW I'M PROPOSING AN ADDITIONAL ONE.
YOU ANSWERED MY NEXT QUESTION IN YOUR ANSWER.
ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS? NO, OF COURSE.
AND JUST LIKE IT, THANK YOU FOR PUTTING FORTH THE EFFORT AND GETTING THAT THIRD OPTION.
SO WE DEFINITELY APPRECIATE THAT.
I HAVE A QUESTION JUST QUICKLY, ALL THE OPTIONS YOU SHOW HAVE TO DO WITH THE INTEREST IN SEEK AND FIND WHY NO OPTIONS TO MODIFY THE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION BECAUSE OF THE VOTERS HAVE ALREADY APPROVED THAT.
RIGHT? NO, I DO HAVE ONE SMALL QUESTION.
UH, SO I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH, UH, YOU GUYS GOT TO KICK THIS AROUND YESTERDAY, BUT IN THE EVENT THAT WE GENERATE A SURPLUS, BECAUSE MAYBE I'VE PROBABLY TEXTED A PROPERTY VALUES INCREASE, AND WE GENERATE A LITTLE BIT MORE THAN WE EXPECTED.
CAN WE EARMARK THAT AMOUNT TOWARD, UH, THAT'S KIND OF ESSENTIALLY WHAT WE'RE DOING NOW WITH THE DEAD.
IF YOU LOOK ON THE WORKSHEET ON THE TEXT CALCULATION WORKSHEET, UH, THAT WAS IN THE BOARD, UM, DOCUMENT, UH, LAST WEEK AND IT'S ALSO LET ME SEE, SHARE THE PAGE NUMBER.
IF YOU LOOK ON PAGE 25 AND YOU LOOK AT LINE NUMBER 30 IN THIS PAGE, 25 IN THIS PACKET, IN YOUR FOLDER, OKAY.
LET ME KNOW WHEN YOU'RE THERE.
IF YOU SEE ONLINE 30, THE CERTIFIED 2020 EXCESS DEBT COLLECTIONS.
SO LAST YEAR, LIKE I SAID, THE BUDGETS WERE LIKE LOW BECAUSE OF ALL THE PROPERTY THAT WAS, UM, HADN'T GONE THROUGH THE REVIEWS AND ALL OF THAT INFORMATION.
SO LAST YEAR WHEN WE ADOPTED OUR TAX RATE, WE ANTICIPATED A DEFICIT OF LIFE, UM, OVER A MILLION DOLLARS THAT WE WOULDN'T COLLECT ENOUGH TAX REVENUE TO BE ABLE TO MEET THAT OBLIGATION.
SO WE BROUGHT IT A BUDGET WITH A DEFICIT OF LIKE A MILLION, YOU KNOW, THAT WE WERE PREPARED TO, UM, UTILIZE OUR FUND BALANCE IF WE NEEDED TO.
UM, AND AS WE WENT THROUGH THAT PROCESS, YOU KNOW, THEY RECOGNIZED WE GOT ADDITIONAL REVENUE AND I DID THE BUDGET AMENDMENT LAST WEEK FOR THE $2 MILLION IN THE DEBT SERVICE FUND TO BRING THE BUDGET UP TO WHAT THE ACTUAL IS WORK.
AND STILL YOU HERE THAT 1.4 IS ALREADY FACTORED IN, IN A REDUCTION OF THE 16 MILLION FOR OUR PROPOSED BUDGET WOULD BRING,
[00:15:01]
BRINGS THE ADJUSTED DEBT DOWN TO A LINE 31 TO 14.8.SO THEY'RE ALREADY FACTORING IN ANY EXCESS, YOU KNOW, WHEN THEY'RE CALCULATING, UM, THE RATE THAT THEY WOULD ALLOW US TO DO FOR THE DEBT PIECE.
AND SO IF YOU LOOK ON THE BUDGET THAT I PRESENTED OR THAT GOT ADOPTED, UM, LAST WEEK FOR DEBT, WE WERE LOOKING TO UTILIZE 300 AND SOMETHING THOUSAND.
AND EVEN ON THE, UM, LET ME GO BACK TO THE EXCEL WORKSHEET.
SO YOU'LL SEE PROJECTED FUND BALANCE DECREASED IN OPTION A, WE WERE LOOKING TO UTILIZE $332,000 A FUND BALANCE.
SO THEY'VE ALREADY FACTORED IN THE EXCESS THAT WE'VE COLLECTED LAST YEAR IN THE CALCULATION OF THE RATE.
SO IT'S NOT LIKE WE GOT THE MONEY AND, YOU KNOW, WE'RE HOLDING ONTO IT, THAT'S FACTORED IN TO THAT CALCULATION.
SO WITH THAT IN MIND AND LOOKING AT, UM, YOU KNOW, WHERE WE ARE, I WAS OFF, I'M FINE WITH US SAYING WE WOULD POSSIBLY DIP INTO OUR CURRENT FUND BALANCE OF 330, $2,000 WITH THE, YOU KNOW, ASSUMPTION WE'RE SAVING 2 MILLION.
AND SO EVEN IN ALL THE OTHER CALCULATIONS THAT EXCESS DEBT IS ALREADY FACTORED INTO THE RATE.
SO YOU'LL SEE ON BEAT WHERE WE'RE GOING, EVEN A LOWER RATE, THE AMOUNT WE'RE DIPPING INTO FUND BALANCE INCREASE TO THE 470,000 ON OPTION B, WHERE IT SAYS, UH, PROJECTED FUND BALANCE DECREASED.
AND SO THAT'S WHY THAT AMOUNT IS A LITTLE LARGER BECAUSE WE'RE DOING A LOWER TAX RATE.
AND SO THAT'S WHY I MENTIONED ON THE OPTION C WHERE WE'RE ONLY PREPAYING A MILLION DOLLARS OF DEBT.
WE'RE ACTUALLY, WE WOULD BE DIPPING INTO OUR FUND BALANCE, UM, A LARGER AMOUNT THAN OPTION A BECAUSE WE'RE COLLECTING LESS TAX REVENUE AT THE LOWER RATE.
UH, JUST ONE MORE THING IF I MAY.
SO YOU'RE SAYING THAT THE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION RATE AT 1.0 3, 2 9 IS VOTER APPROVED AND CAN BE CHANGED.
IS THAT OKAY? I DIDN'T SAY IT CAN'T BE CHANGED.
THE VOTERS HAVE ALREADY APPROVED THAT.
THAT IS DETERMINED BY THE STATE.
WHEN THEY, WE SUBMIT OUR PRODUCTS.
SO NOW YOU COMPUTED THREE DIFFERENT OPTIONS HERE, CHANGE IN THE INTEREST IN SYNC AND PHONE, THAT ONE OPTION CHANGE, CHANGING THE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION.
I'M JUST UNDERSTANDING, I'M TRYING TO UNDERSTAND WELL, WHILE YOU'RE NOT CONSIDERING OTHER OPTIONS, BECAUSE THAT'S THE VOTER APPROVED TAX RATE.
AND SO TO ME, THE VARIABLE IS THE AMOUNT I CAN CONTROL WHEN SIDE THAT MAKES NO SENSE.
CAN YOU MAYBE EXPLAIN ON THE M AND O HOW THAT'S COMPUTED IN RUN WHEN YOU SAY IT'S APPROVED BY THE VOTERS WHEN YOU DID THE TAX RATIFICATION, UM, IN 2018.
I WANT YOU TO 1118 SINCE YOU KNOW, THAT SWITCHED OVER, UM, YOU KNOW, TO BE UTILIZED ON THE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION SIDE.
AND SO THAT'S NO LONGER 17 CENTS.
THAT'S BEEN COMPRESSED DOWN TO 13 CENTS.
SO 0.1, THREE, SIX, AND THAT INFORMATION WAS DONE.
THAT'S GIVEN TO US BY, UM, THE LEGISLATURE.
THEY'VE COMPRESSED THAT DOWN TO 0.1, THREE, SIX.
AND THEN EXPLAIN THAT GAVE ME MORE KNOWLEDGE.
THANK YOU AGAIN FOR THE DILIGENCE.
I DO GREATLY APPRECIATE YOU DEMONSTRATE THOSE THREE SCENARIOS, BETTERING MYSELF, LET'S SAY, AND YOU KNOW, THE BOARD, WE DEFINITELY WANT TO LOOK OUT FOR OUR TAXPAYERS TO THE BEST OF OUR ABILITY, BUT WE ALSO HAVE A DUE DILIGENCE TO ENSURE THAT FOR SITE LIKE THE BONDS, WE TOOK OUT TO BUILD NEW BUILDINGS AND DO RENOVATIONS TO ENSURE THAT WE PAY THAT DEBT OFF IN A TIMELY MANNER.
LIKE YOU HAVE EXPRESSED TO US, IF WE EVER NEED TO DO ANOTHER MAJOR PROJECT, WE WILL NOT HAVE THE ROOM TO DO THAT BECAUSE WE HAVE NOT PAID OUR DEBT DOWN FROM THE PAST BOND FOR WHAT WE OWE NOW.
SO, BASED ON WHAT YOU'VE GIVEN ME ON YOUR OPTION, A IS THE INCREASE FOR TAXPAYERS WILL BE $12 A MONTH.
IT WILL BE $2 AND 91 CENTS A MONTH FOR TAXPAYERS, OPTION C IT'S $6 A MONTH.
YOU KNOW, THEY'RE NOT EXCESSIVE AMOUNTS.
SO WE DEFINITELY WANT TO BE COGNIZANT OF OUR TEXT-BASED AS WELL AS MYSELF.
I PAY TAXES IN THE CITY ALSO, BUT WE HAVE TO LOOK AT WHERE WE'RE FALLING SHORT BY CUTTING BACK $60 OR $2 AND 91 CENTS A MONTH AND HOW THAT WILL IMPACT THE DISTRICT LONGTERM.
SO THANKS A LOT FOR EXPLAINING, CAUSE I DEFINITELY, THAT HELPED ME OUT A LITTLE BIT.
UM, THANK YOU FOR RECOGNIZING THAT, UM, MADAM CHAIR, UM, I OBVIOUSLY WAS NOT, NOT PRESENT IN 2018.
I MOST OF YOU WERE, AND AGAIN, THE TAXPAYERS PUT THEIR VOTE AND VOTED AND SHARED WHAT THEY WANTED US TO BE ABLE TO DO.
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IT JUST, AS A SUPERINTENDENT, MY TASK IS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE BEING GOOD STEWARDS OF TAXPAYER DOLLARS.AND I PUT FORTH THE BEST, UM, SCENARIO WITH THE TAX DOLLARS, WHICH I FEEL IS A, UM, IF YOU NOTICE YES, THAT IT OFFSETS SOME OF THE DOLLARS WITH OUR TAXPAYERS AND THEIR THINGS, BUT IT INCREASES OUR MOUNTS THAT WERE TAKEN OUT OF OUR, UM, BALANCE MY FUND BALANCE, WHICH MAKES ME VERY NERVOUS.
UM, BECAUSE ALSO WE ALSO NEED TO LOOK AT THE SCENARIOS OF WHEN WE'RE NOT PAYING, WHEN WE CAN AND WE PAY IN A LOWER AMOUNT.
IT ALSO IMPACTS OUR CREDIT RATING AS WELL AS A DISTRICT.
UM, AND SO AGAIN, AS CHAIR HAMILTON, UM, ELABORATED, IT IS REGARDING BEING GOOD STEWARDS, OUR TAXPAYER DOLLARS.
AND I WOULD HATE TO GO TO OUR TAXPAYERS IN THE NEXT THREE YEARS OR SO, ASKING FOR MUCH MORE THAN WHAT WE'RE ASKING TODAY, WHEN WE KNOW WHAT THE PLAYING FIELD IS, AND WE CAN SUBMIT THAT AMOUNT.
UM, I WOULD JUST LIKE TO SAY WE SCRIBE HARD AND LANCASTER 36 YEARS GOING ON 37 THAT I'VE BEEN HERE AND I'VE SEEN A DISTRICT IN ONE ERA.
AND THEN THIS ERA, I DO KNOW THAT YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR UNDERSTAND THAT I PAID TAXES.
WELL, I'LL WATCH A HOUSE BEING BUILT 10 BLOCKS FROM ME THAT SO, SO MUCH HIGHER THAN MINE THAT PUT MY HOUSE HALFWAY TO BEARS.
WE CAN'T DO NOTHING ABOUT THAT, YOU KNOW, BUT WHAT WE CAN DO IS SET PRECEDENTS FOR OUR CHILDREN AND THEIR FUTURE.
THAT'S WHAT WE ARE GOOD STEWARDS FOR.
UM, I WANT TO KNOW WHAT IS YOUR RECOMMENDATION OPTION A OKAY.
AND SO OPTION A TELLS ME THAT WE'RE GOING TO SAVE MONEY.
MA'AM SAVING MONEY WHEN IT'S NOT OUR DOLLARS.
THE MONEY, THE SAVE WILL GO TO OUR CHILDREN.
UM, I DON'T SEE NO OTHER WAY AND I WOULDN'T EVEN LOOK FOR ANOTHER WAY IF I'M SAVING THAT MUCH MONEY IN THE LONG RUN AND I PLAN TO BE HERE ANOTHER 30 YEARS, I'M A BOWL PLAYER.
CAN I MAKE A MOTION THAT WE ACCEPT? OPTION C WE'RE STILL DISCUSSING.
SO WITH THAT THAN THE MOTION BY MR. SMITH TO ACCEPT OPTION C, LET ME, I'M SORRY.
I MOVED AT THE PROPERTY RATE WOULD BE INCREASED BY THE OPTION OF A TAX RATE OF 1.4, 2 7 2, UH, WHICH IS EFFECTIVELY A 1.4, 5% INCREASE IN THE TAX RATE.
IS THERE ANOTHER MOTION FROM THE BOARD, MADAM PRESIDENT OVER THE WAY THAT THE PROPERTY TAX RATE BE INCREASED BY THE ADOPTION OF A TAX RATE OF $1 47 0 4, WHICH IS EFFECTIVELY A FOUR AND A HALF PERCENT INCREASE IN THE TAX RATE.
WE HAVE A MOTION BY MR. JONES FOR OPTION.
IS THERE A SECOND? WELL, NOT IN PRECEDENT.
IF YOU CONSULT THE STATUTES, THEY HAVE A SPECIFIC WAY TO GET THAT MOTION MUST BE WORDED.
MS. ALEXANDER, ARE YOU ON THE LINE? MS. ALEXANDER? HE'S CONNECTING AUDIO IS THE ISSUE WITH THE $1 4 47 0 4.
THAT'S TASKED WITH RAISING THE TAX RATE.
I MEAN, I WOULD THINK YOU AT LEAST KNOW THE PROPER WAY TO DO IT.
PEOPLE TELLING ME THAT THAT COUNTY APPRAISAL DISTRICT IS THE ONE RESPONSIBLE
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FOR RAISING YOUR PRICES.THE MOTION HERE ON THE FORM FOR US, MS. ALEXANDER, CAN YOU HEAR US? THANK YOU.
I HAD GOTTEN TO DOUBT FOR A PART OF THAT CONVERSATION AND JUST GOT BACK IN.
WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF TRYING TO MAKE A MOTION FOR THE TAX RATE.
UM, IS THERE A SPECIFIC WAY THAT THE MOTION SHOULD BE READ THE WAY WE MADE THE MOTION? IT WAS READ THAT BY MR. JONES.
I MOVED THAT THE PROPERTY TAX RATE BE INCREASED BY THE ADOPTION OF THE TAX RATE OF 1.4704, WHICH IS EFFECTIVELY A 4.5% INCREASE IN THE TAX RATE.
MR. STEVENSON HAS MENTIONED THAT THAT MOTION WAS INCORRECT.
CAN YOU INFORM US, PLEASE? WHAT'S THE BASIS OF IT BEING INCORRECT, MR. STEVENSON? WELL, THERE'S A SPECIFIC STATUTE THAT INSTRUCT HOW THE MOTION HAS TO BE ORDERED THAT'S THE WORDING WAS TAKEN FROM THE TSP.
YEAH, THAT SOUNDS, IT SOUNDS FINE TO ME.
UNLESS YOU CAN PRODUCE SOMETHING IN STATUTE THAT SAYS IT'S INCORRECT.
I, I DON'T THINK THAT THERE'S AN ISSUE WITH THAT MOTION.
WELL, IF THERE'S YOU THINK THERE'S NO ISSUE, NO ISSUE IS GOING TO COME UP LATER.
SO BOARD, THERE IS A MOTION ON THE FLOOR.
IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND? OKAY.
WE HAVE A MOTION BY MR. JONES.
THE SECOND BY MS. MORRIS AT THIS TIME.
DO YOU MIND IF I GO LAST? THAT'S FINE.
SO WE HAVE ADOPTED THE NEW TAX RATE OF 1.4704.
THERE'S NO OTHER ITEMS ON OUR AGENDA.
THE NEXT ITEMS WILL BE A GERMAN ALL IN FAVOR OF ATTORNEY.
AND BEFORE WE GO FORWARD, I WOULD JUST LIKE TO, UH, AGAIN, THANK FINANCE DEPARTMENT, UH, FOR THE WORK THAT'S BEEN DONE IN THIS MATTER ALSO WOULD LIKE TO THANK MR. STEVENSON.
UH, UH, SPEEDMAN HONORABLE STEVENSON FOR THE QUESTIONS THAT HAVE, UH, CAUSED ME TO DO MORE RESEARCH WITHIN HIS AREA, UH, FOR US TO BECOME A LOT MORE DILIGENT IN THESE QUESTIONS AND MOVING FORWARD.
SO A DAILY ONE FROM YOU AS WELL, UH, ARMOUR STEVENSON, AS WELL AS THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS THAT PARTICIPATED IN THIS NET NEXT STEP.
SO, UH, THANK EACH OF YOU FOR YOUR WORK.
AND I WILL LOOK FORWARD TO ENSURING THAT WE'RE DOING THE BEST.
THANK YOU, MS. JONES, ANY OTHER COMMENTS BEFORE WE CLOSE? I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A COMMENT IN THE, IN THE GREATER INTEREST I VOTED FOR THIS, BUT I NEED YOU GUYS TO UNDERSTAND THAT I WAS MAKING AN EFFORT TO, TO LOWER THE TAX RATE.
I WAS HOPING THAT BREACH IT MORE OF A COMPROMISE.
UM, BUT THAT MAKES SENSE FOR ME TO HOLD UP PROGRESS.
ANYONE ELSE BEFORE WE ADJOURN? JUST ONE MORE THING FOR THE SECOND TIME TONIGHT, A MEMBER OF THIS BODY HAS TOLD ME THAT YOUR TAX INCREASE IS BECAUSE OF THE APPRAISAL DISTRICT, RAISING APPRAISALS ON YOUR HOME.
NOTHING COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH ANNUALLY.
THE DALLAS COUNTY APPRAISAL DISTRICT GIVES YOU WHAT UNFORTUNATELY IS A PRETTY ACCURATE APPRAISAL OF THE VALUE OF YOUR HOUSE.
WHAT RAISES YOUR DISTRICT IS WHAT HAPPENS IN THIS ROOM RIGHT HERE BY WHATEVER STATE CALCULATIONS THERE ARE, THEY SET A MAXIMUM ON HOW MUCH YOUR TAX RATE CAN BE, BUT THERE WAS NO LOOK, THERE'S AN OLD MINIMUM.
OBVIOUSLY, IF YOU GO TOO LOW, YOU GOT A PROBLEM, BUT IT'S NOT ILLEGAL THE LOWER THE TAX IN SPITE OF WHATEVER YOU MIGHT HEAR HERE.
IS THERE A MOTION TO ADJOURN? SOME OF, OKAY.
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OKAY.