Several Rockwall ISD residents and a Rockwall High School student urged the Board of Trustees to support the districts voter-approval tax ratification election during public comment at the Oct. 20, 2025, regular meeting.

The comments focused on the November election on the voter-approval tax ratification election (VATER). Eric Baughton, a Rockwall resident and parent, raised concerns about transparency around the districts revenue and referenced state reporting, saying the district had selected an option to purchase average daily attendance credits to offset excess local revenue obligations under "TEC 48.257." He told the board that "taxpayers deserve to know where their money is going."

Doug Roth, another parent, said he is "pro teacher, but Im anti tax," and criticized the districts prior outreach after a failed vote last year. He said the districts engagement felt like "the beginning of a concerted marketing campaign" rather than open dialogue and urged trustees to find a different way of engaging the community.

Harrison McDonald, a senior at Rockwall High School and one of two National Merit semifinalists the board recognized earlier in the meeting, said the 2025 VATER "will protect the existence of our CTE program, special education," and urged the board to support Proposition A to maintain staff and programs. "Our track record of qualified, dedicated teachers depends on this election," McDonald said.

Other speakers including Kimberly Ellis, Leslie Pierce and Ryan Joyce framed the election as a local choice to maintain teacher pay, campus security and special education services. Pierce said the proposal is "simple, clear and focused" on three priorities and described block-walking conversations with voters. Joyce described a personal example of a teacher who remained in the district and said that experience motivated his support.

Adrian Balcom, who described reviewing TEA materials, told the board he believes Rockwall ISD is "a long way off from recapture" and said his review of finance reports suggested the district "has never been in recapture and will not likely go into recapture." He said TEA staff indicated the agency does not comment on local ballot measures.

After public comment, Trustee Sherry Packer asked David Carter, the districts Senior Chief Financial Officer, to respond. Carter said, "The short answer is no." He added, based on the most recent data available on the Texas Education Agency website, the district would not pay local property tax revenue to the state through the recapture mechanism if Proposition A passed. "All of the current local revenue that we collect and all of the potential new revenue that we would collect if the evader[s] approved by voters would stay inside the district," Carter said.

The superintendent, Dr. Villarreal, and board members did not take further formal action on comments; the public comment period closed before the board moved to closed session. The superintendent earlier in the meeting noted early voting for the VATER had begun and would continue through Oct. 31, with Election Day on Nov. 4.

Why it matters: Voter-approval tax ratification elections decide whether a district may keep certain local tax revenue; questions about whether a district will be subject to the states recapture formula influence voter and trustee discussions about local tax measures and school funding.