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    • Frenship ISD voters consider property tax increase and 0 million bonds
    Idaho

    Frenship ISD voters consider property tax increase and $200 million bonds

    Madoc Meredith Posted on

    WOLFFORTH – Voters in the Frenship Independent School District will decide in November whether the district can raise property taxes to avoid a budget deficit and issue multimillion-dollar bonds to build new schools and buy modern technology.

    The Frenship ISD school board on Monday unanimously approved a $127.69 million budget proposal for the 2024-25 fiscal year. The budget is balanced and includes an average 5% salary increase for teachers and staff, district officials said.

    The budget is based on a property tax rate that is above the threshold that requires an election under state law. The board also passed a resolution to use a Voter Approval Tax Rate Election (VATRE) to fund the budget.

    The county is proposing a tax rate of $1.1567 per $100 of property value. While that is lower than last year’s rate, it represents a tax increase of about 11 percent for most property owners. This would generate about $5.3 million in additional revenue for the county.

    “I am proud of this district and the Clerk’s Office team for being fiscally responsible and good stewards of taxpayers’ money. We are the largest district in Lubbock County that has not passed a deficit budget,” Board President Brad Draper said in a statement. “Balancing the budget is more difficult than ever. We are opening new schools and state funding has not increased since 2019.”

    Frenship voters will also have two bond initiatives on the ballot in November after the school board approved the ballot on Monday.

    The school board is seeking approval of a $189.5 million bond package to build two new elementary schools and make safety improvements and renovations to existing school sites. Another $10 million package will be used to purchase new classroom technology.

    “As a rapidly growing district, Frenship welcomes hundreds of new students each school year and currently serves more than 11,600 students at 16 locations in Wolfforth and Lubbock communities,” the district said in a press release. “Based on demographic studies and new housing projects in the district, Frenship will need two additional elementary schools in the next few years to accommodate future growth.”

    Due to the short lifespan of electronic devices, the technology bond will be repaid over a period of five years, the district said.

    “This technology bond would allow the district to maintain 1:1 technology for students and staff by purchasing additional technology equipment and replacing older equipment,” the press release said.

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    Madoc Meredith
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