Round Rock ISD Officials Schedule Press Conference Boosting $572M Bond Referendum

ROUND ROCK, TX — Round Rock ISD officials will join others civic leaders and community members at a scheduled morning press conference on Monday to promote the district's $572 million bond proposal.

The press conference is scheduled on the first day of early voting on the bond referendum during which district officials hope to gain voter approval to issue debt to finance a long list of projects and new high school. It also comes at a time of growing opposition to the proposal from a vocal group of tax watchdogs.

Scheduled to promote the bond proposal are former Round Rock ISD trustee Catherine Hanna, now chair of Classrooms for Kids; Round Rock ISD board President Diane Cox; Round Rock Chamber Chair-elect Steve Stapp; former Mayor Charlie Culpepper; President of TECO Westinghouse Motor Co. Pat Rogers; Round Rock ISD trustee Mason Moses; among others.

Opponents of the multimillion-dollar bond proposal include a group calling itself the Travis County Taxpayers Union. One of its members is high-profile: Don Zimmerman, a former member of the Austin City Council from 2015-17 before being defeated in a bid for another term. Staunchly conservative, Zimmerman has trained his sights on the proposed bond issue as his latest target, painting the measure as exorbitant.

In a recent post on his Facebook page (named "Former Austin City Councilman Don Zimmerman") he posted photos of yard signs expressing opposition to the proposed bond issue, urging voters to reject it at the polls. "Help us defeat this offensively wasteful, unaffordable and dishonest bond," he wrote.

In a recent interview with conservative radio station KLBJ, Zimmerman charged that the Round Rock ISD was hiding the identity of corporate donors to the district's campaign promoting the debt issuance. He told the news station he recalled the district listing each corporate donor to their campaign to promote a previous issuance in 2015.

"But this time around, there were $26,000 of corporate donations, but the only thing it said was 'Round Rock Chamber of Commerce $15,000' and 'Betterment of Round Rock $7,000.' " Zimmerman said, alleging the district was attempting to conceal potentially conflicted donors by lumping them together under an umbrella organization.

"It looks like they figured out a way to conceal the corporate donors by running the money directly through the Round Rock Chamber of Commerce," Zimmerman told the news station. "So, we're trying to figure out who these corporate donors are."

Another group opposing the bonds is called Round Rock Parents and Taxpayers, arguing against the measure based on the district's projections based on on projected increases in home appraisals, the property tax basis that funds school districts.

“They are riding these high appraisal increases and they are using that to pay for this bond but they are not representing that as the cost of the bond,” Patrick McGuinness of Round Rock Parents and Taxpayers told KXAN. Questioned why his group is including home value increases in his calculus—something the school district doesn't control—McGuiness said the tax rate should be lowered rather than counting on them to rise to fund the bond repayment.

"The total dollars is what’s in their control,” he told the station. "We could be lowering the tax rate to compensate for these large appraisal increases.”

But Round Rock ISD defended the district's calculations: "“We’re the only Central Texas school district that’s AAA rated by both Moody’s and Fitch and that’s because of some of the financial practices we have in place to make sure we’re benefiting taxpayers in Round Rock,” he said

According to the district's calculations, the average increase in taxation for the average household will be $26.74 a year, or $2.23 per month.

But given skepticism from the mounting opposition, district officials say their Monday press conference is intended to clarify matters: "Join local leaders and community members who support the bonds to set the record straight about why the bonds are so important for the future of RRISD," officials wrote in a press advisory.

The press conference is scheduled Monday (April 24) from 1o:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Round Rock Chamber of Commerce, 212 E. Main St.

For a full list of projects district officials hope to finance through the issuance of bonds, click here.

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