Argyle voters considered a $511.5 million bond election last year. When they went to the polls, they rejected two packages and green-lighted the third.
In a voter-approved tax ratification election in November, voters rejected a proposal to increase the tax rate by 7.7 cents, which would have brought the district’s property tax rate to $1.91 per $100 valuation and would have kept $2.5 million in the district and lifted teacher salaries by 2%. The tax rate impact for Argyle ISD residents would have been an increase of $77 for every $100,000 of taxable home value on their annual bill.
Next week, the Argyle ISD school board will vote on a new bond package that would include money for new campuses, athletic facilities, improvements at existing campuses, land purchases, buses and technology infrastructure. The recommended total for the May 2025 bond package is $423.2 million.
In an official communication to taxpayers in the district, Argyle school administrators said a new bond committee convened in December to research, discuss and propose another bond election.
“The recommended total for the May 2025 bond package is $423,170,000,” an email to Argyle ISD community members said.
The bond proposal drilled down to what bond committee members and the school district deemed essential.
“With Argyle ISD projected to grow at an average rate of 8.4% in enrollment over the next five years and exceed 11,000 students by 2033, proactive planning is essential,” the district said. “We are incredibly grateful for the community and staff members who dedicated their time, talents, and expertise over the past two months to address this growth and ensure exceptional learning environments for our students for years to come.”
The school district has been listed among fast-growth districts by the Fast Growth School Coalition for several years. The coalition is an advocacy group that promotes support and public awareness of the state’s booming regions and the demands that growth implies for school districts. it also promotes advocating for Texas lawmakers to support public schools.
Argyle ISD and its nearby fast-growth districts continue facing a double bind: Enrollments are swelling even as the Texas Legislature opted not to increase the basic allotment that funds schools per pupil according to average daily attendance. Texas public schools haven’t seend a funding increase from the state in six years.
On Wednesday, the 89th Texas Legislature will see the Senate vote on a voucher system that would allow taxpayers to use public school funds for private school education or homeschooling. In his State of the State address on Sunday, Gov. Greg Abbott said teacher pay raises are an emergency item this session.
“We must fund and train the best teachers,” he said. “That starts with giving our teachers a pay raise this session.”
Abbott also called for a program that would put Texas public school teachers on a path to earn a six-figure income, likely an initiative lawmakers think will keep certified teachers from leaving the profession, a problem that has plagued the state for years but accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic, when teachers had to suddenly pivot to teaching online.
Abbott also said he’s planning to work with lawmakers to require all bond and tax ratification elections to be held in November, when more Texans take the time to go to the polls.
Argyle ISD still faces opposition to the bond election. In a Facebook group, Concerned Residents of Argyle ISD, members discussed the proposed bond election and said their reservations about a bond package focus on what they say is the district’s inability to show it can cover maintenance and operations budgets for the proposed construction of the district’s sixth elementary school and second middle school. The proposal would also cover the costs of the planning and design of a third middle school. Those voters said they want assurances that the district would be able to afford the new campuses, and pointed to deficits at existing campuses as a prelude to problems in the future.
Argyle residents aren’t inventing worries. The Legislature is looking at more property tax cuts this session, which could mean more affordable housing for homeowners and relief for business owners with brick-and-mortar commitments, but less money for school districts, which fund their maintenance and operations with property taxes.
Across the state, school leaders hope the building boom will bring more funding to their districts. As of last April, more than 1,400 lots in Argyle ISD were currently available for construction, and with more than 500 homes being built, the district was expecting steady growth over the next 10 years.
The Argyle school board will hear and discuss the bond proposal at a special-called meeting at 4 p.m. Feb. 12.