"We need a bond; just not THIS bond!"

2008 Klein ISD Proposal: Everything you NEED to know!

At the March 4, 2008 Klein ISD School Board meeting, the Trustees called for a bond referendum in the amount of $646.9 million. The election will be held on Saturday, May 10th.

As voters and taxpayers, we all need to consider whether this is a reasonable amount. The financial impact on the residents of Klein ISD is substantial. According to Thomas Petrek, Associate Superintendent Financial Services, the debt service portion of our tax rate (currently $0.22) is projected to increase at least $0.20 over the next 4 years. In addition, the Maintenance & Operation (M&O) portion of the budget (currently $1.04) will also likely increase, perhaps an additional $0.05. This would have to be done with a rollback election, but it would be necessary due to the opening of new schools. So over the course of the next 4 years, our property taxes will likely look like this:

$1.04 (current M&O)
$0.05 (likely additional M&O)
$0.22 (current debt service)
$0.20 (proposed bond debt service)
$1.51 (total projected tax rate)

Our current tax rate is 1.26. Proponents of this increase will argue that we have been at this tax rate and higher in previous years. Don’t let that fool you. First of all, the state mandated a reduction in the M&O portion of the tax rate to $1.00 with an additional $0.04 “super pennies” that could be added at the discretion of the school board. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, what was the appraised value on your home just a few years ago? While tax rates were higher, appraised values were lower! So they are comparing apples to oranges. You have to consider the bottom line, and the bottom line is we will be paying more and more taxes at a time when the economy is struggling.

Again, I ask you is this a reasonable amount? Proponents of this bond will also argue that other area school districts passed much larger bonds in November, 2007. Let’s look at that:

HISD: $805 million
Cy Fair: $807 million
Spring Branch: $597.1 million
Fort Bend: $428 million

Here’s the rest of that story:

HISD: 200,000 students. Residents were told their taxes would not increase! HISD also has a 20% homestead exemption and a huge commercial base.

Cy Fair: 117,000 students with a VERY large commercial base to help absorb the taxes. Cy Fair also has a 20% homestead exemption thereby shifting even more of the taxes to the commercial segment.

Spring Branch: 32,000 students (yes, less than Klein) but they are only 30% residential, and they too have a 20% homestead exemption. Their tax base is $14.1 billion.

Fort Bend: 68,000 students

Klein ISD: 42,000 students, 80% residential, $11.1 billion tax base!

Initially the Steering Committee was told that the next bond would be in 2013. Later that was changed to 2012. So in 4 more years we will need another bond. In that bond we will need to build High School #6, at least 1 more Intermediate School, and several elementary schools as well as land purchases for many sites. Technology funds will also be necessary to provide laptops for Intermediate Schools. Krimmel, the 2 new Intermediates, and Hildebrandt will already have laptops, but funding will be needed in the 2012 bond for all the other Intermediate Schools. There is no way to predict how much the 2012 bond will need to be, but we can model the maximum that it can be. State law limits school districts to a debt service rate of $0.50. If our debt service rate becomes $0.42 (current $0.22 plus proposed $0.20) that only leaves $0.08 for the next bond. There is no way that $0.08 will be enough to fund all of those projects.

Now let’s shift our focus away from taxes and consider other controversial aspects of this bond:

Technology is creating a lot of discussion. Initially $72 million was allocated for technology. That was later reduced to $38 million when laptops were removed for Intermediate Schools (other than Hildebrandt and the 2 new Intermediates). Do the research for yourself. Google “school laptop programs” and see just how successful these have been in other districts that have used them for several years. Public schools have a responsibility to educate all of our children. We as taxpayers do not have a responsibility to pay for laptops for every student in our district.

The overcrowding situation is a major concern for our community:

Elementary and Intermediate schools in our area will continue to be terribly overcrowded, yet this bond only calls for 3 new Elementary schools. Of the $646.9 million in this bond, only $312 million is for new seats and land for future sites. The district hired a company that specializes in demographics. Population and Survey Analysts (PASA) projections show a need for an additional high school to open in 2010. Initially the Steering Committee was told that HS #5 would open in 2010. When the architects realized they were designing a high school for 3500 students, they had to push the opening back to 2011. With their desire to move all of Klein High School to this new location for 2 years, no rezoning would take place until 2013. An addition to Klein Oak is planned, and in 2010 the capacity at Klein Oak will be 3500. Proponents of this plan claim that this will take care of the overcrowding situation at Klein Oak. The PASA report proves otherwise. Based on the LOW GROWTH projections, in 2011 Klein Oak will have 3687 students, and by 2013 Klein Oak will have 4070 students! PASA’s “Most Likely” growth scenario predicts enrollment of 3959 in 2011 and 4472 in 2013. High School #5 needs to open in 2011 as a new school, with rezoning, in order to properly address the overcrowding situation at Klein Oak.

Do you want to pay $130.2 million to rebuild Klein High School at this time? There are no engineering reports indicating it is structurally unsafe. The school continues to yield high quality students in its current location. It is an old facility and is in need of a facelift. But if I want to remodel my kitchen, I don’t bulldoze my house and build a new one. The district has not provided any justification to show that a rebuild is more cost effective than a remodel. The School Board even asked that question during their March meeting, and they were not given an answer. Renovating existing spaces can be done over time, even during summer months when school is not in session, and proper renovations can substantially reduce maintenance costs over years to come. Additionally, if the facility is such poor condition, why wait until 2011 to rebuild Klein High School? Why not start right away? The additional cost of waiting until 2011 is $23 million. The bottom line is that the district wants to give Klein High School a brand new school, they want to move the students into HS #5, and they want us to pay $130.2 million to do it.

This bond is so controversial that the Steering Committee did not even reach a consensus about it! Ask any Steering Committee member (I have asked several) if they were given any dollar amounts to help in their evaluation process along the way. The answer is no. They were asked to evaluate the merit of each project without any consideration given to the cost of that project. They were finally given figures at the end of all the presentations. Who was steering whom in this situation?

If you have not already done so, I encourage you to visit www.kleinisd.net as well as www.kleinforall.com for more information. This proposed $646.9 million bond is NOT good for ALL of Klein ISD. We need a bond; we just don’t need THIS bond. Please help us support the best interests of our community. As a community we HAVE to stand up and vote NO on May 10.