By STEVE REAGAN Staff Writer Last-minute tax limitation agreements will be the major point of business for Big Spring and Coahoma school trustees this week.
Big Spring public school trustees are expected to give their approval to a tax limitation agreement with a wind energy company when they hold a special meeting at 5:15 p.m. Thursday in the high school board room.
The Coahoma school board will consider a similar agreement, plus campus renovation plans, when they meet at 7 p.m. Thursday in the administration board room.
Big Spring ISD Superintendent Michael Downes said the tax limitation agreement with Invenergy Co. was scheduled for a board meeting earlier this month, but was delayed while state comptroller’s representatives examined the plan.
School districts are in a rush to get these agreements on the books before the year ends so that they take effect as soon as possible.
In Big Spring’s case, the agreement with Invenergy calls for the company to pay full valuation the first two years, then have its tax valuation capped at $30 million for the following eight years.
A benefit for BSISD is that it will receive 40 cents of every tax dollar saving the company receives during the agreement, which could mean almost $4 million for the district, Downes said.
And it’s money the district can keep, he added.
“Normally, an increase in local funds leads to a decrease in state funds,” he said. “This agreement, however, is exempt from that.”
The only other business item on the BSISD agenda is personnel matters.
Coahoma trustees will consider a similar tax valuation agreement with Iberdrola Energy during their Thursday meeting.
The agreement is similar in structure to BSISD’s, with the exception that Coahoma will agree to a $10 million tax limitation with Iberdrola.
CISD Superintendent Jerry Johnson said the wind energy company’s payments to the school district could total up to $7 million over the life of the agreement.
Johnson added that the money could help finance additional renovation projects.
“We had several alternate projects that were part of the original bond that we had to pull because of rising construction costs,” Johnson said. “We are going to look at possibly putting some of those projects back in Thursday night.”
Those additional projects include a new ceiling and grid for the junior high classrooms, lights for the junior high gym and a parking lot northeast of the junior high, Johnson said.
Contact Staff Writer Steve Reagan at 263-7331, ext. 234 or by e-mail at
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... this city because it reminds my family and I about our hometown back on the island of Kailua - Kona Hawaii. Well we love the people they are so welcoming and we tell our family about it and they say we are lucky to have picked a wonderful place to move to and I say "yes we are " my children love their school and their teachers i'm so glad that we moved here to give our children a better opportunity in life..
Michelle Maumau - Big Spring, TX
...i am scared to even have my kids outside because you never know if you are going to be in the crossfire of another one of the shootings.
