China Spring ISD Taxpayers

02/11/2026

02/09/2026

Will all members of this page consider posting the trustee election info everyday on all CS pages so the notice will get out?
Copy and paste from below:

There are 3 school board trustee places up for election on May 2nd, 2026. Current encumbants are:
Rick Hines, Holly Dunham & Bubba Galvan
Filing for candidacy starts Jan 14, 2026 and Deadline is Feb 13, 2026.
To file in person go to the Admin Office or mail the application to CSISD PO Box 250, China Spring Tx 76633

01/27/2026

There are 3 school board trustee places up for election on May 2nd, 2026. Current encumbants are:
Rick Hines, Holly Dunham & Bubba Galvan
Filing for candidacy starts Jan 14, 2026 and Deadline is Feb 13, 2026.
To file in person go to the Admin Office or mail the application to CSISD PO Box 250, China Spring Tx 76633

01/23/2026

Go vote in the primaries.

01/12/2026

Here’s a clear overview of how Tier 1 and Tier 2 funding work in the state of Texas, including what golden pennies and copper pennies are — based on the Texas public school finance system under the Foundation School Program (FSP):

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📌 Tier 1 — Foundation Funding

Tier 1 is the basic state-guaranteed funding for every school district.
It’s meant to ensure every district gets enough money to cover essential educational services.

What Tier 1 includes
• A state-set entitlement amount per student based mostly on the Basic Allotment (BA) (a set dollar amount multiplied by attendance and adjusted for student characteristics).
• A compressed maintenance & operations (M&O) tax rate (often called the Tier 1 MCR) that districts can levy locally to help pay their share of this entitlement.
• The state pays the rest of the Tier 1 amount that local taxes don’t cover.

Key Points
• Tier 1 is about core educational funding (teachers, basics, etc.).
• The local portion comes from the Tier 1 tax rate (the MCR).
• State and local dollars are blended so every district gets a minimum funding level.

💰 Tier 2 — Enrichment Funding

Tier 2 is additional funding above the basic entitlement — often called “enrichment.”

What Tier 2 means
• Districts can choose to levy property taxes above the Tier 1 rate (MCR) to generate more money for programs, services, salaries, etc.
• The state guarantees a specific amount of revenue per student for those “extra” pennies of tax effort. This is called a guaranteed yield.
• Tier 2 has two levels with different yields and rules — golden pennies and copper pennies.

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🟡 Golden Pennies (Tier 2 Level 1)

These are the first pennies of tax effort a district levies above the Tier 1 rate.

Key characteristics
• There are up to 8 golden pennies available for use.
• They generate a higher guaranteed yield per student (e.g., $129.52 in recent years under HB 2).
• State aid tops up local revenue if local taxes don’t produce the guaranteed amount.
• Golden pennies are not subject to recapture — districts keep all revenue they generate from these cents.
• The first few (typically 5) can usually be adopted by the school board; additional golden pennies generally require voter approval via a VATRE.

👉 Think of golden pennies as the most valuable extra tax effort — they bring in more money per student and carry stronger state support.

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🟤 Copper Pennies (Tier 2 Level 2)

After using golden pennies, districts can levy additional pennies of tax effort — these are copper pennies.

Key characteristics
• Districts can generally add up to 9 copper pennies after golden pennies.
• They generate a lower guaranteed yield per student (statutorily set — e.g., ~$49.72 recently).
• Unlike golden pennies, copper penny revenue is subject to recapture if the district’s local revenue exceeds its entitlement.
• Voter approval (VATRE) is required to adopt copper pennies in the tax rate.

👉 Copper pennies provide extra revenue but are less valuable per student and can trigger recapture.

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📊 How It All Fits Together
Tier Purpose How It’s Used Recapture? Voter Approval?
Tier 1 Basic education funding State + local taxes to meet basic per-student allotment Yes, if local > entitlement No
Tier 2 — Golden Pennies Enrichment (higher yield) First 8 pennies above Tier 1 No Board/Usually some voter thresholds
Tier 2 — Copper Pennies Additional enrichment (lower yield) Next 9 pennies Yes Yes (VATRE)

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🛠 Quick Definitions
• MCR (Maximum Compressed Rate): The tax rate applied locally to generate revenue for Tier 1.
• Guaranteed Yield: The per-student amount the state guarantees for each penny of tax effort in Tier 2.
• Recapture: If a district generates more local revenue than its entitlement, the excess can be taken by the state. Golden pennies avoid this; copper pennies do not.
• VATRE (Voter Approval Tax Rate Election): A local election needed for certain tax rate increases above what the board can adopt on its own.

11/06/2025

More than $90 billion in new bond debt was on the ballot Tuesday in dozens of school districts and other local taxing entities. More than 40 school districts also asked voters to approve elevated property tax rates.

Voters in Lamar CISD approved three of four proposals in a $1.99 billion bond package, narrowly rejecting nearly $27 million in stadium improvements. In Richardson ISD, voters approved a $1.4 billion bond package, and in San Antonio's North East ISD, all but $12 million of a $495 million bond package was approved.

Voters in Greenville ISD approved a $399 million bond proposal after rejecting three others since May 2022. A $460 million bond package for Brownsville ISD failed, as did bond proposals totaling $517 million for Magnolia ISD and $550 million for Van Alstyne ISD.

Voter Approval Tax Ratification Elections (VATREs) in China Spring ISD, Garland ISD, Rockwall ISD, Liberty Hill ISD, Boerne ISD, and Abilene ISD passed. VATREs in Spring Hill ISD, Judson ISD, and East Central ISD were rejected.

For our children and grandchildrens sake, this madness has to stop.

We have a better, FAIR, way.

If you support the Principles of Liberty and believe in Private Property Ownership,… WELCOME!You’ll find information here about the ongoing activism in Texas and the Legislature to Eliminate Property Tax.Why Eliminate Property Tax?– Because Private Property Ownership is central to a free socie...

11/03/2025

17 State amendments and 1 new CS Tax increase. VOTE NOV 4TH!!
12166 Yankie Rd @ CS Admin bldg.

11/03/2025

🇺🇸 PLEASE SHARE (turn sound on) 🔔
VOTE Tuesday 4th at the CS Admin Bldg- 12166 Yankie Rd.