Voters to unlock state funding for Mission CISD
Unofficial results from the Nov. 7 election show constituents voted in favor of Proposition A — a measure that allows the district access to an extra $2.7 million in state funds at no extra cost to the taxpayer.
With 51.21% of the vote, residents approved the tax-rate proposition. There were a total of 1,984 ballots cast, with 1,016 in favor and 968 against. However, the vote remains unofficial until the county canvasses and certifies the results.
In an emailed statement to the Progress Times, Mission CISD officials said they are waiting for the county to declare the results official before celebrating the outcome.
“We want to inform you that our school district is committed to transparency and accuracy,” Superint
endent of Finance Joel Garcia said in the statement. “However, it is essential to await the official results, which are scheduled for release on the afternoon of November 15th, before making any statements or providing information to the public.”
When constituents voted for Proposition A, they voted in favor of Mission CISD moving money from one fund to another — reallocating $0.0317 from the interest and sinking fund to the maintenance and operations fund. The interest and sinking fund (I&S) exclusively pays for bond debt payments, while the maintenance and operations fund (M&O) exclusively pays for daily district operations.
With how the state structures school funding, the reallocation from the I&S to the M&O would unlock m
illions of extra dollars in state aid year after year without hurting taxpayers.
Mission CISD trustee Juan Gonzalez said he believes those who opposed Prop A were misinformed.
“I feel that those that voted against didn’t quite understand what was happening,” Gonzalez said. “We’re very happy that it passed and hopefully those that voted against it can understand, once we get going, how good it’s going to be for the district.”
In the past, Mission CISD’s superintendent of finance has said the district plans to use the extra funding for compensation and instruction if the proposition passes.
