Published: November 03, 2009 10:00 pm      

Tax increases nixed

Voters defeat tax proposals for Aledo, Millsap

Phil Riddle

editor@weatherforddemocrat.com

Parker County voters were in no mood for spending money, as was evident by the results of Tuesday’s local elections in which a pair of school district tax boosts were defeated.

In Millsap, voters quashed a 13 cents per $100 valuation bump in property taxes by a vote of 311 to 244.

“It’s really hard to understand public school financing,” said MISD Superintendent Jerry Hunkapillar. “We’re still strong in Millsap, and we want to continue our programs.”

Hunkapillar said the district leadership will probably look to re-introduce the issue next year.

“We’re probably looking at another election next September,” he said. “We’ll have to make sure everyone understands what this means. We really need to pass this in September.”

Aledo voters gave the thumbs down, 1,027 to 768, to a 12.5-cent increase in the maintenance and operations portion of the district’s ad velorem taxes, which was to be balanced by a 13-cent drop in the interest and sinking portion.

Superintendent Don Daniel felt the tally was the result of a lack of information.

“I think people were voting uninformed,” he said. “We simply wanted to make these changes to maximize state funding.”

Daniel added with the defeat of the proposition, AISD will be forced to crack open other accounts.

“It means we’ll have to spend $3 million out of our fund balance,” he said.