The Pampa Independent School District Board of Trustees met on Monday evening for a brief meeting to set Nov. 2 as the date for the Voter Approval Tax Rate Election.
The move has been discussed throughout the summer and will actually result in lower taxes for the citizens of Pampa and more income from the State of Texas to the District.
“We made a motion to have the VATRE,” Board President Matt Brock said. “The tax rate will be set depending on that election. The State sets the rate that you can charge and if you go above that rate you have to have an election.”
There are two rates, M&O (Maintenance and Operations) and I&S (Interest and Sinking Debt), that go into the school district’s tax rate. After re-financing some bonds earlier this year, the District is able to move two cents from the I&S to the M&O.
“In all reality, the taxes will slightly go down a little bit,” Brock said. “But since we are raising that above what legislation says you can have above the rate, we have to have an election. It’ll bring in about $800,000 from the State to the District.”
If approved, the total tax rate will be $1.2384/$100 valuation, down from $1.2414/$100 valuation.
“It helps us get a lot more funding from the State because of the two Golden Pennies,” Brock said.
The VATRE will be held on Nov. 2 with the constitutional amendment election.
