EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14\/CBS4) \u2014 Texas voters approved Senate Bills 4 and 23 in the November election, lowering property taxes by increasing homestead exemptions, but some school districts in El Paso County say the state\u2019s plan to replace the lost revenue is falling short and could have long-term consequences.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were two. It was SB4 and SB23. And what those did is that it lowered everybody\u2019s property tax,\u201d state Representative Vince Perez, said.<\/p>\n
Both measures raised the homestead exemption, meaning homeowners will pay taxes on a smaller portion of their property value. <\/p>\n
RECOMMENDED: El Paso Central Appraisal District chief appraiser explains factors driving home values<\/a><\/p>\n For example, on a $200,000 home, homeowners under 65 used to be taxed on $100,000. <\/p>\n Under SB4, that exemption increases to $140,000, meaning they\u2019re taxed on $60,000.<\/p>\n For homeowners over 65, SB23 increases their additional exemption from $10,000 to $60,000, which can bring their total exemption up to $200,000.<\/p>\n To make up for the lost revenue, the state promised to cover the difference through what\u2019s known as a \u201chold harmless\u201d provision.<\/p>\n Perez said the funding formula can also force districts to lower their tax rates when taxable values drop, reducing revenue further.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen a school district\u2019s taxable value goes down then it triggers this calculation where then the state comes back and tells EPISD, \u2018Okay now because your taxable values going down, you can only tax this, your tax rate has to go down,\u2019\u201d Perez said.<\/p>\n In El Paso, Ysleta ISD said it is already seeing the impact. Chief Financial Officer Lynly Cambern told the school board Wednesday that the district is not being fully made whole.<\/p>\n \u201cNow all of those changes took place under the guise of we\u2019re going to hold you harmless,\u201d Cambern said. \u201cSo the state said, \u2018We are going to impose these changes on you, but at the same time that we reduce your tax rate and increase the homestead exemption, which reduces local revenue, we\u2019re going to hold you harmless.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n As the district prepares for next year\u2019s budget, Ysleta ISD could cut more than 80 positions, many through voluntary resignations and early retirement. <\/p>\n Chief Human Capital Management Officer Bobbi Russell-Garcia said the district is looking at 99 positions overall, with most of the reductions expected through attrition.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s 83. And so out of those 99, 83 of those positions can be um taken in through attrition. These positions were voluntarily resigned,\u201d Russell-Garcia said.<\/p>\n