Northwest ISD approves lowest M&O tax rate in three decades

Taxpayers in Northwest ISD will see the lowest tax rate for the school district in more than three decades following unanimous approval from the school board.

At their August 22 meeting, the Northwest ISD Board of Trustees approved a maintenance and operations (or M&O) tax rate of $0.8546, which combines with the interest and sinking (or I&S) tax rate of $0.42 for a total tax rate of $1.2746. This marks a decrease from the 2021-2022 total tax rate of $1.2920.

With trustees’ approval, this total tax rate is now the lowest for Northwest ISD taxpayers in more than a decade, while the Maintenance and Operations is the lowest since 1990.

“I’m pleased that our continued growth has allowed us to maintain a low tax rate for our community,” said Gilberto Prado, chief financial officer. “Our finance team does an outstanding job diligently creating fiscally sound budgets that are transparent, and we will continue to wisely use our taxpayers’ investment in local children.”

In Texas, school district M&O tax rates are determined by the state government based on a formula. Northwest ISD’s fast growth has played a beneficial role in this formula, as increasing property values compresses the M&O tax rate. The second part of the total tax rate, the I&S portion, is levied to service debt approved by voters as part of bond elections.

Northwest ISD’s fast growth means the district has typically sought voter approval for bond referendums every three to five years to build new schools to accommodate an influx of new students. With about 2,000 students expected to join the district each year for at least the next decade, the community may provide bond input with more frequency, however, as Northwest ISD remains the fastest-growing school district in North Texas.