Another Texas school district voted to stop sending “Robin Hood” recapture payments to the state, saying “enough is enough.”
Trustees in Keller Independent School District approved a resolution to withhold its next state-mandated recapture payment during a special board meeting on Monday.
Recapture is a school finance scheme used by the state to redistribute locally collected property tax money from property-wealthy districts to property-poor districts, earning it the nickname Robin Hood.
Board President Charles Randklev said the amount of money that Robin Hood removes from local school districts is “staggering” and has nearly tripled, to $3 billion.
“Where is this money going?” he asked.
“Last month we sent about $2.5 million to Austin in the form of attendance credits,” he said. “To date, we have yet to receive a single penny from Austin to help offset inflation, increase the basic allotment, or increase salaries for our hardworking educators.”
The vote in favor of the resolution was 5-1. Trustee Ruthie Keyes cast the lone vote against the resolution. Trustee Joni Shaw Smith was absent.
“We need recapture reform, and it starts with increasing transparency,” said Randklev. “To that end, we join our colleagues from Spring Branch ISD in saying enough is enough.”
Trustees in Spring Branch ISD voted unanimously last month to stop sending recapture payments to the state.
“The state’s school finance system is broken,” added Randklev. “We need change and this Board will continue to advocate for that change at the state level.”
Last month, Keller ISD trustees adopted a property tax rate below the No New Revenue rate—or what Randklev called the “doing right by families rate.”
He called the budget and tax rate vote “a huge win for taxpayers… a real, actual TAX CUT for Keller ISD families.” He said the tax cut would save average homeowners from $500 to $1,000.
“This didn’t happen by chance,” he said. “It took a Board united in our vision to protect taxpayers.”
Keller ISD is also in the process of searching for a new superintendent.
The district’s next regular school board meeting is scheduled for September 25.
