School taxes will likely see a decrease in the coming year for those living within the Ganado school district.
That’s after board members met last week to adopt their proposed 2026-27 fiscal year budget and tax rates on Wednesday, June 17.
According to their public notice published in these very pages on June 3, homeowners in Ganado ISD will likely see about a $39 decrease in their tax bills in the year ahead, falling from an average of about $483 last year to $443 this year.
Of course, such saving may well prove moot, as average property values rose from about $190,069 in 2025 to $198,653 in 2026.
Still, the savings listed in their printed notice came despite overall tax rates climbing by about 4 cents per $100 valuation in the school’s interest and sinking account (I&S), the result of recent voter-approved bond issues within the district.
The proposed school operations tax rate remains unchanged at 64.790 cents per $100 valuation, while the proposed I&S rates move from 45.954 cents per $100 to 50 cents per $100.
Those proposed rates will help fund an estimated $14.4 million balanced budget for the coming year, up from about $12.4 million currently, the biggest differences coming as part of the school’s debt service categories as payments come due on those bonds.
The board will meet next month in hopes of finalizing the budget and tax rates for the year ahead. Unlike most districts where budgets and tax rates are set in August, Ganado ISD’s fiscal year ends in July.
In other business:
• Board members authorized superintendent John Szymanski to enter negotiations with the architectural firm Sledge Engineering to lead design work for latest bond project renovations at the school’s auditorium, field house, CTE barn and new softball field.
They also greenlighted similar contract negotiations with the construction firm Jacobs & Weaver, who will head up actual work on said projects.
• Ganado ISD approved Roloff, Hnatek & Co. to continue its annual school audit services for the district.
• Trustees reviewed and signed off on several end-of-year budget amendments, including requests to compensate hourly workers who were impacted by the school’s closures on May 15 brought on by a districtwide illness and on May 28, when almost everyone in town traveled with local girls to the state champion softball finals.
• The school board also renewed its drug dog contract for the coming year, reviewed financing plan options for their most recent round of school bonds and approved a summer work calendar change that grants Monday off, following the upcoming Fourth of July weekend.
