Midway ISD facing 5.5 million dollar budget deficit

17,749 Views | 156 Replies | Last: 1 mo ago by chrisbyrum
Marlin3030
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1:14p, 7/30/23
Heard this from someone at lunch today, (its evidently common knowledge and not a secret) and he also said the district is going to ask for a three cent increase on taxes. I'm assuming that means three cents per some dollar amount in value? I'm not the best at understanding a great deal of this.


With the new property tax bill recently signed by Abbott, what are some of potential issues associated with that? If the first $100,000 of value on a property with a homestead exemption cannot be taxed by a school district, does this mean the CAD will more than likely increase values to the maximum percentage every year during this three year life of the bill to make up for some of the lost tax revenue? Also, does this make it more likely that properties without a homestead exemption will pay more?

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BylrFan
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1:17p, 7/30/23
They shoulld go to 4 school days like everyone else in the county.
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RightRevBear
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In reply to BylrFan • 3:50p, 7/30/23
BylrFan said:
They shoulld go to 4 school days like everyone else in the county.


Because families can afford paying for a day of childcare while both parents are working. Most families need two incomes to survive. This hurts the working class the most.

If they have to defund something, it should be their sports programs. We know that will never happen though.
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BaylorGuy314
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3:55p, 7/30/23
Priorities.

Spent $20MM on indoor practice facility 10 years ago. Don't get me wrong, it gets ton of use by a lot of sports but the point is that we overspend when the getting is good and then complain when the good stops. Its not a Midway issue- its an American culture issue. Its dumb. /rant
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Eleven-League Grant
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5:37p, 7/30/23
The timing and optics on this are very poor, methinks.

While the argument can be made that on average the taxpayers in the Midway ISD are more affluent than those in some other districts in our area, and thus can 'better afford it', Midway also has the offsetting advantage of having some of the highest property values in the area on which those taxes are levied.

Moreover, the taxpayers in all districts are currently faced with increasing costs on everything from food to housing to insurance to ... fill in the blank.

While perhaps some of those taxpayers' incomes are increasing at a rate equal to or better than those increased costs, I suspect many are not. As a result, hard choices are made by those families, which usually means they have to manage doing with less.

To ask for a tax rate increase now, in spite of yet another year (in a string of several) where we've had rising property valuations, is to my way of thinking, quite 'bold.'

I heard someone the other day equate tax revenues paid to a school district to 'spending money' given to an 8-year-old at a carnival. You can count on the child spending every dime given to him, and then coming back to ask for more.

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Localbear
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7:11p, 7/30/23
Being above University and Waco High is not a high bar for affluence. Midway is #103 on this list

http://www.usa.com/rank/texas-state--median-household-income--school-district-rank.htm

That is behind Robinson, China Spring and Lorena.

Having lived in Bentonville, AR, New Albany, OH and Prosper, TX and now driving through Woodway and Hewitt…these two cities are not affluent and you barely see any houses over $800k.

I think Midway wants to keep up with the top 50 on the list, but needs to realize they will never catch up. Still a really good school and value for the cost of living in the area. Produces just as many top college freshmen as the others.
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Coke Bear
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In reply to BaylorGuy314 • 10:41p, 7/30/23
BaylorGuy314 said:
Priorities.

Spent $20MM on indoor practice facility 10 years ago. Don't get me wrong, it gets ton of use by a lot of sports but the point is that we overspend when the getting is good and then complain when the good stops. Its not a Midway issue- its an American culture issue. Its dumb. /rant
I spoke to a fellow Midway ISD grad who had kids in the program at that time. (Mine were in Lorena.)

I was shocked that they wanted an indoor facility and wouldn't have voted for it just to raise my taxes. He told me that Midway had been doubling up on their bond payments to pay them off more quickly back then. They were going to just pay them at their regular rate instead of the double payment and they could afford the facility.

IIRC correctly, the threw every wish-list item they could think of into the bond and it passed based on the fact that taxes weren't going to go up.

I haven't read anything on the issue now, I should feel guilty saying something like, "Well, it's time to pay the piper now."
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254alum
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In reply to BylrFan • 12:00p, 7/31/23
Is anyone else in the county currently discussing it? I thought it was just CS.
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sipembeers
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In reply to 254alum • 12:08p, 7/31/23
Connally and La vega both altered their approved schedules to more of a hybrid.

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sipembeers
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In reply to Coke Bear • 12:13p, 7/31/23
The funding is different for daily maintenance and operation expenses in comparison to the bond payments (interest and surplus).

Most all districts are passing deficit budgets this year, the state isn't helping districts with funding and making the districts look like the bad guys when they ask property owners to increase the tax rate.

Just did a quick search on MCAD of a random midway ISD property. The tax rate has dropped 20 cents over the last decade.
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SteamedHams
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In reply to sipembeers • 12:50p, 7/31/23
sipembeers said:
The funding is different for daily maintenance and operation expenses in comparison to the bond payments (interest and surplus).

Most all districts are passing deficit budgets this year, the state isn't helping districts with funding and making the districts look like the bad guys when they ask property owners to increase the tax rate.

Just did a quick search on MCAD of a random midway ISD property. The tax rate has dropped 20 cents over the last decade.

The state also passed SRO/security requirements without including the funds to cover said new requirements.
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BaylorGuy314
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In reply to SteamedHams • 3:37p, 7/31/23
SteamedHams said:
sipembeers said:
The funding is different for daily maintenance and operation expenses in comparison to the bond payments (interest and surplus).

Most all districts are passing deficit budgets this year, the state isn't helping districts with funding and making the districts look like the bad guys when they ask property owners to increase the tax rate.

Just did a quick search on MCAD of a random midway ISD property. The tax rate has dropped 20 cents over the last decade.

The state also passed SRO/security requirements without including the funds to cover said new requirements.

That was also horrid legislature. I was sitting in the Lorena school board meeting when it was discussed. I'm going off memory but to implement all the state-required items at all campuses was going to cost something like $5MM. The state was going to chip in something like $300K (less than 10%), leaving the district to figure out the other $4.7MM but penalize them if they weren't in compliance by X date.

That's government optics for you. Politicians passing laws that get voters on their side so they can push the bogeyman onto the districts.

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cowboycwr
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7:31p, 7/31/23
Most school districts could do with budget cuts at central office like what Houston ISD did. I'm not saying midway should do this as I don't know if they are too heavy or not but I know many (like Waco isd) are.
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4th and Inches
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In reply to sipembeers • 10:42a, 8/1/23
sipembeers said:
The funding is different for daily maintenance and operation expenses in comparison to the bond payments (interest and surplus).

Most all districts are passing deficit budgets this year, the state isn't helping districts with funding and making the districts look like the bad guys when they ask property owners to increase the tax rate.

Just did a quick search on MCAD of a random midway ISD property. The tax rate has dropped 20 cents over the last decade.
as they should, if your property value goes 3 times what is was 5 years ago, but you only need 2 times the budget of 5 years ago, the tax rate should go down.

Tax rates are supposed to be set based on budgets. Total budet needs are divided across all taxable property "equally" based on appraised value and a tax rate is set.
“Mix a little foolishness with your serious plans. It is lovely to be silly at the right moment.”

–Horace


“Insomnia sharpens your math skills because you spend all night calculating how much sleep you’ll get if you’re able to ‘fall asleep right now.’ “
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bularry
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In reply to cowboycwr • 4:43p, 8/1/23
cowboycwr said:
Most school districts could do with budget cuts at central office like what Houston ISD did. I'm not saying midway should do this as I don't know if they are too heavy or not but I know many (like Waco isd) are.
I'm sure there is some waste, but funding schools is a larger issue than just too much admin. Providing a modern education is a lot more involved and expensive than it was 30 years ago. It is just a fact. But no one wants to pay for it, including me!

we have some challenges in the state, I think
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CorsicanaBear
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5:11p, 8/1/23
They are providing quality, modern educations in most of the developed countries in the world for less per student than the US. And in those countries that spend nearly as much as the US, the education is much better.

We have no excuse.
Illigitimus non carborundum
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hill02
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5:14p, 8/1/23
Midway has incredible facilities that would rival many colleges.

It is a tough ask to the taxpayers to vote for a tax when the optics of current facilities include:

A massive indoor facility
Brand new turf for baseball and softball facilities
A gorgeous gym
A midway only beautiful football field
An incredible high school
Multiple Renovated other schools

Also a few years ago we asked about using the midway football field for an event to benefit the Alzheimer's Assoc. Midway told us no and was not nice about it.

WISD offered WISD stadium and couldn't have been nicer.

It is hard to justify a yes vote when the property tax values have sky rocketed.
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FrankFallonCalling
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In reply to CorsicanaBear • 9:19p, 8/1/23
CorsicanaBear said:
They are providing quality, modern educations in most of the developed countries in the world for less per student than the US. And in those countries that spend nearly as much as the US, the education is much better.

We have no excuse.

The vast majority of other developed countries do not educate the same spectrum of students for the duration that we do.

I love international education comparisons and there is much that we can learn from others, but apple to orange comparisons are not helpful.
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MrGolfguy
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In reply to hill02 • 10:35p, 8/1/23
hill02 said:
Also a few years ago we asked about using the midway football field for an event to benefit the Alzheimer's Assoc. Midway told us no and was not nice about it.

WISD offered WISD stadium and couldn't have been nicer.
Midway sucks; always has, always will
Well I ain't no greenhorn!!
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El Mariachi
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10:59p, 8/1/23
This is 12 minutes long but is a good video explaining school finances. If nothing else, I recommend watching the first 2 or 3 minutes.



There has been mention above about facilities and how asking for a tax increase is bad optics, but Midway will be requesting an increase to the maintenance and operations (M&O) rate. That is separate and distinct from the interest & sinking (I&S) rate that pays for construction of facilities. The majority of the money generated from the rate increase will go to teacher salaries. Overall, the tax rate will decrease anyway due to compression as a result of the legislative session.

Other good videos. School finance is convoluted, so it helps to get a high level understanding.



DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in the immediately preceding post are those of El Mariachi and do not reflect the views and/or opinions of family, friends, or anyone remotely associated with El Mariachi unless explicitly stated. El Mariachi does not make any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any liability or responsibility for the quality, factuality or use of information in the immediately preceding post.
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hill02
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11:17p, 8/1/23
The rate may decrease but isn't that offset by enormous property tax valuation increase?

Has the overall budget gone down?
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Harrison Bergeron
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In reply to CorsicanaBear • 7:54a, 8/2/23
CorsicanaBear said:
They are providing quality, modern educations in most of the developed countries in the world for less per student than the US. And in those countries that spend nearly as much as the US, the education is much better.

We have no excuse.
Cannot speak to other countries, but in the U.S. secondary education definitely is one of those areas that has seen unprecedented bureaucratic bloat. Each year teachers spend more time dealing with whatever new shiny thing they bureaucrats brought back from the year's educational conferences where "academic" educators and other bureaucrats introduce the latest idiotic ideas from the schools of "education." I am not arguing schools do not need to adapt and change with technology, but the fundamentals of education really have not changed that much from 1900 to 2023, but I am sure the ratio of classroom to non-classroom expenditures has changed.
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El Mariachi
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In reply to hill02 • 9:39a, 8/2/23
hill02 said:
The rate may decrease but isn't that offset by enormous property tax valuation increase?

Has the overall budget gone down?


Yes, the rate is going down in general because of compression…effectively the offset to higher property values. The problem is that the state is contributing less and less to public education and relying more and more on local taxes to fund it.

The budget hasn't gone down. The cost of educating students has increased. Payroll is the largest expense of a school district. Because of inflation, teachers need to be paid more than they were making even 18 months ago. But lawmakers aren't increasing the basic allotment (which is what drives the amount of revenue that districts are eligible to receive).

DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in the immediately preceding post are those of El Mariachi and do not reflect the views and/or opinions of family, friends, or anyone remotely associated with El Mariachi unless explicitly stated. El Mariachi does not make any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any liability or responsibility for the quality, factuality or use of information in the immediately preceding post.
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CorsicanaBear
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3:30p, 8/2/23


Quote:
The vast majority of other developed countries do not educate the same spectrum of students for the duration that we do.
And this is exactly the thing that I am proposing we should quit doing.
Illigitimus non carborundum
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FrankFallonCalling
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In reply to CorsicanaBear • 3:45p, 8/2/23
CorsicanaBear said:


Quote:
The vast majority of other developed countries do not educate the same spectrum of students for the duration that we do.
And this is exactly the thing that I am proposing we should quit doing.
Forgive me if I missed the solution that you offered.
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CorsicanaBear
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12:08p, 8/3/23
I'm sorry. I'll spell it out. We should quit trying to educate people who have no desire to be educated. We should quit using the schools for welfare/babysitting programs (free lunch, pre and post school programs etc.). We should quit pretending athletic programs somehow contribute to the academic mission of schools.
Illigitimus non carborundum
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BaylorHistory
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In reply to CorsicanaBear • 10:56a, 8/4/23
CorsicanaBear said:
I'm sorry. I'll spell it out. We should quit trying to educate people who have no desire to be educated. We should quit using the schools for welfare/babysitting programs (free lunch, pre and post school programs etc.). We should quit pretending athletic programs somehow contribute to the academic mission of schools.
So, what are you doing with 14-year-olds that "haven't figured it out academically" yet? Put em in factories?
“People who live in glass houses...have to answer the door."
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SteamedHams
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In reply to BaylorHistory • 10:59a, 8/4/23
BaylorHistory said:
CorsicanaBear said:
I'm sorry. I'll spell it out. We should quit trying to educate people who have no desire to be educated. We should quit using the schools for welfare/babysitting programs (free lunch, pre and post school programs etc.). We should quit pretending athletic programs somehow contribute to the academic mission of schools.
So, what are you doing with 14-year-olds that "haven't figured it out academically" yet? Put em in factories?


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El Mariachi
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3:42p, 8/4/23
https://www.kwtx.com/2023/08/03/midway-isd-considering-possible-election-tax-rates-increase-teacher-pay

What hasn't been discussed here is that Midway is likely going to lower the I&S rate by the same amount of the increase to the M&O rate. That means a net zero impact to the overall tax rate. Hopefully voters will understand that their rate won't go up and that it will actually go down almost $0.11 because of state-legislated compression.

DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in the immediately preceding post are those of El Mariachi and do not reflect the views and/or opinions of family, friends, or anyone remotely associated with El Mariachi unless explicitly stated. El Mariachi does not make any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any liability or responsibility for the quality, factuality or use of information in the immediately preceding post.
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sipembeers
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3:48p, 8/4/23
Good luck with voters understanding that. CS rate effectively went up 2 cents on paper, however in the verbiage on the ballot it read 13 cents. The naysayers who disliked the board held onto that statement and ran with it.

People see the increase and only and increase. Going to be tough to prove the need after the district gave 2.7MM in salary increases across the district for teacher 16 months ago, too.
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Bear Doc
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In reply to El Mariachi • 9:50a, 8/5/23
El Mariachi said:
https://www.kwtx.com/2023/08/03/midway-isd-considering-possible-election-tax-rates-increase-teacher-pay

What hasn't been discussed here is that Midway is likely going to lower the I&S rate by the same amount of the increase to the M&O rate. That means a net zero impact to the overall tax rate. Hopefully voters will understand that their rate won't go up and that it will actually go down almost $0.11 because of state-legislated compression.


A tax rate that goes down by a minuscule amount is largely offset by property values that go up yearly by a prodigious amount making the net affect a higher check to write the tax office at the end of the year.

System is screwed up and convoluted. Fuzzy math everywhere making it more complicated and difficult to understand than it needs to be.

How much would we have to increase sales tax to fund the Texas education system? Seems like a better, simpler solution.
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hill02
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12:50p, 8/5/23
What he said above.

Property valuations have skyrocketed and MCAD takes zero responsibility.

What percentage have the annual MISD total budget increases been on average for the last 5-10 years?

That would provide a lot of clarity.
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forza orsi
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In reply to hill02 • 11:38a, 8/6/23
hill02 said:
What he said above.

Property valuations have skyrocketed and MCAD takes zero responsibility.

What percentage have the annual MISD total budget increases been on average for the last 5-10 years?

That would provide a lot of clarity.

You can't just look at total budget dollars. The total enrollment of MISD is up about 20% from 2012-2022, from 7,266 to 8,739. New students = more schools, more teachers, more support staff. Then general US inflation is up 27.5% from 2012 to 2022.

For the fiscal year ending August 2012, the MISD budget was $53.7 million. If you apply the 10 year student enrollment growth rate and inflation to that you get $82.7 million. The budget for the fiscal year ending August 2022 was $75.3 million, less than that calculation above. That's not a perfect measuring stick and I'm sure there are places to improve efficiencies, but the budget dollars per student have gone down on an inflation-adjusted basis. I'm all in for cutting waste, but the budget growth in the district doesn't seem out of line.
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Bear Doc
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In reply to forza orsi • 12:41p, 8/6/23
forza orsi said:
hill02 said:
What he said above.

Property valuations have skyrocketed and MCAD takes zero responsibility.

What percentage have the annual MISD total budget increases been on average for the last 5-10 years?

That would provide a lot of clarity.

You can't just look at total budget dollars. The total enrollment of MISD is up about 20% from 2012-2022, from 7,266 to 8,739. New students = more schools, more teachers, more support staff. Then general US inflation is up 27.5% from 2012 to 2022.

For the fiscal year ending August 2012, the MISD budget was $53.7 million. If you apply the 10 year student enrollment growth rate and inflation to that you get $82.7 million. The budget for the fiscal year ending August 2022 was $75.3 million, less than that calculation above. That's not a perfect measuring stick and I'm sure there are places to improve efficiencies, but the budget dollars per student have gone down on an inflation-adjusted basis. I'm all in for cutting waste, but the budget growth in the district doesn't seem out of line.


Theoretically if the enrollment grows by 20%, then the tax base should grow by 20% as well offsetting that aspect.

Cannot argue about the inflationary issues though. That is a problem in every area or society.
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Moondoggie
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1:19p, 8/6/23
Wife was teacher of the year at probably one of the most challenging Waco ISD campuses. We moved her to Midway thinking that would be the end-all-be-all.

It has not been that. VERY backwards instructionally speaking compared to Waco ISD. I'm talking a decade behind waco isd and even a small school district she started at in falls county. Her hands are tied in the classroom and the challenges of zero parental involvement have been replaced by the annoyance of know-it-all helicopter parents in some cases.

But all of this could be remedied by one thing…l pay her what she is worth. Midway used to match waco isd but now does not, and now Midway ISD has a ton of unnecessary turnover. Raise the taxes a tad. Our future generation is worth it.
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