It's official - your taxes are going down

It's official. Lamar CISD property owners will see a lower tax bill following action by the district's board of trustees Thursday night.

In the second phase of the school tax reform package passed in a special legislative session in May 2006, LCISD trustees voted to lower the district's tax rate by 25 cents per $100 valuation - a reduction of just over 16 percent.

In following the provisions of House Bill 1, trustees approved a tax rate which totals $1.29765, down from this year's $1.54765 rate. Local property taxes, along with increased state funding, will fuel LCISD's $156 million budget, which also was approved by trustees Thursday.

Included in the budget were 5 percent raises for teachers and 3 percent pay hikes for other district personnel.

No one addressed the board during a public hearing on the budget and tax rate before the general meeting Thursday.

Jill Ludwig, chief financial officer for the district, outlined the major components of the tax rate and budget during the public hearing. The district's taxes are based on a net taxable property value of $8.211 billion, a 24.24 percent increase over 2006.

The maintenance and operations portion of the tax rate is $1.00005, a decrease of 33 cents, and the debt service portion of the tax rate is 29.76 cents, an 8-cent increase over 2006.

The district uses a 98 percent collection ratio on its property taxes.

State funding will provide $57.6 million of the budget.

Sixty-three percent of the budget, some $98 million, will go to the classroom. Plant maintenance and operations will take up $20 million, and some $8.7 million has been set for administration. Student transportation will run about $7.3 million.

The food service portion of the budget, at $8.7 million, exists outside the general fund and was approved.

Of the total budget, by far the largest expense - $127.9 million - goes to payroll and total employee costs.