KINGSVILLE, Texas — Kingsville Independent School District officials are planning significant budget cuts after voters rejected the VATRE, which was designed to address the district’s $4.2 million budget deficit.
The Voter Approval Tax Ratification Election (VATRE) failed to pass during Tuesday’s election, with 786 votes (60.60%) against and 511 votes (39.40%) in favor of the measure.
The proposition would have lowered the interest and sinking tax rate by 3.17 cents while increasing the maintenance and operations tax rate by the same amount, resulting in no net change to the overall school tax rate.
Dr. Peter Pitts, KISD's chief financial officer, said there are a couple of reasons why he believes the VATRE did not pass.
"Everybody did not get to the polls, not all of our parents or employees got to the polls that were for the measure," Dr. Pitts said.
KRIS 6 Neighborhood News reporter Stephanie Molina spoke to some residents off camera, and many did tell her they did not vote in this election.
Dr. Pitts also acknowledged that the district did not spread its message widely enough, particularly to those who are retired and participated in voting.
To address the budget deficit, he said it starts with right-sizing the district.
"Rightsize the number of employees of each different position for the number of students and the number of facilities because funding is given based on the number of students that come to school every day," Dr. Pitts said.
The district's largest expenditures include health and property insurance, which officials will need to manage differently to save money. Other expenses are also under review for potential cuts.
"We as the district are committing to deliver a balanced budget, and we think we're going to be able to deliver very close to a balanced budget this year, but it's going to require a significant cut," Dr. Pitts said.
Major staff changes may not occur until the 2026-2027 school year. The district said its goal is to avoid cuts that would most affect students
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
