Hays CISD voters narrowly approve nearly $116M bond to address growth

SAN MARCOS, Texas - Voters in Hays CISD have narrowly approved a nearly $116 million bond to address the district's projected growth over the next 10 years.

According to unofficial results posted May 7, just over 51 percent of voters in the district, which includes those in Travis County, Hays County, and Caldwell County, approved the bond.

The district says it expects its elementary school population to nearly double by the 2031-32 school year, from 9,700 to 16,527. Negley Elementary, a school specifically named in the bond, is projected to be over capacity next school year.

In the bond, Hays CISD plans to build a new elementary school located near enough to take growth pressure off Negley Elementary as projections show enrollment there to be 2,255 students by 2031-32, more than double the capacity of the school itself.

The bond includes the following projects:

$48,270,043 for construction of new elementary school to accommodate 900 students
$3,475,567 to fund design and pre-construction for another elementary school, so the project is "shovel-ready" should construction be approved in a future bond election
$57,130,690 to move admin personnel to a new Academic Support Center and free needed space at Live Oak Academy to allow for the physical expansion approved by voters in May 2021
$6,773,500 to purchase 55 new school buses, 20 to expand the fleet to accommodate growth and 35 to replace aging school buses slated for retirement

The district says it does not anticipate a tax rate increase following approval of the bond. According to the district, the current tax rate is $1.3597 per $100 property valuation, the lowest it's been since 2016.