EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — The effects of Socorro ISD’s “penny swap” tax rate proposal failing at the election polls may be felt immediately after, with the school board set to discuss and potentially approve a new health insurance plan for its employees, which district officials said will have more expensive premiums.
“Proposition A didn’t turn out the way we wanted. It’s a setback for sure, but we accept the will of the voters and we keep moving forward,” said SISD Superintendent James Vasquez.“ There are going to be some ramifications because of this. So we have to make some tough decisions, starting tonight. We have a board meeting tonight where the board is going to adopt a new health care plan, and we had hoped that with the passage of Proposition A, we would be able to absorb some of those costs so it would be less impactful to our employees. But tonight we’re going to present a different plan in which the premiums will go up a little bit higher than we would have liked.”
The special board meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 5.
Vasquez had said that if it had been passed, Proposition A would have generated nearly $50 million in additional revenue per year for the district. He said the added funding would have been used to restore the district’s financial reserves, to fund employee compensation, to address maintenance needs throughout the district, and to replace aged school materials for students, like laptops.
“Moving down the road, we’re going to need to consider taking out short-term loans like we did last year, possibly even as early as late spring, early summer,” Vasquez said. “We can’t take on any additional expenditures, so that’s why we have to be extremely careful with what we buy and how we buy the materials. And there’s just so much need in the district, not just the laptops,” Vasquez said.
Vasquez had also previously said that among the “tough decisions” for the district down the line could involve potential cuts to student programs and staff.
The proposition’s rejection at the ballot was a devastating blow for SISD teachers and staff, who were hopeful the proposal could serve as a turning point for the district’s financial standing.
“Prop A was an opportunity to not have to let go of precious resources like more teachers, more special ed aides that have been let go of by the district. As it is where we’re running really tight on personnel. We don’t have enough resources, not enough money,” Veronica Hernandez, the president of the Socorro AFT (American Federation of Teachers). “It’s very devastating that it did not pass. And it was so close. It’s very sad. And we’re worried about our future.”
Texas Education Agency (TEA) conservator Andrew Kim, appointed to oversee SISD since April 2024, said the proposition’s rejection at the ballot will not be measured as a criterion to determine when their oversight of the district will conclude.
“Elections are very difficult. Obviously, the district will need to do more to investigate what happened, and there will be an after-action review of this process, because there’s obviously a miss that we did not get to,” Kim said. “This is a hiccup, but this is not one of the exact criterias….What is still concerning, though, is how we go and make sure the finances of the district are at a point where there is balance, where it is reasonable, doable, and sustainable.”
SISD officials told KTSM that the TEA conservators are expected to depart the district around February 2026. Kim said that while SISD has made progress, the decision will ultimately be incumbent on the TEA.
“While we potentially might see ourselves out some time in the near future, the Texas Education Agency, in conjunction with our recommendation, will have the final say in terms of how long we’re here,” Kim said. “At this particular point, when you look at the list of the various items that are part of the exit criteria, the district has moved very quickly to resolve many of those issues.”
Vasquez said one of the challenges that he believed led to the proposition’s rejection by the majority of voters was due to state law requiring that the ballot language describe the proposition as a “tax increase.” Vasquez said the “penny swap” would not have increased the district’s current tax rate for homeowners.
Regarding voters who may have voted against the proposition based on distrust of the district for its recent history of governance and financial mismanagement, Vasquez said they are working to amend the trust of the community.
“We’re coming up on our budget season, which starts, you know, early next year. We definitely want to include the people from the community to provide input. We do want to show that transparency. We want to show them where their tax dollars are going and how they are being spent. 7,100 people did vote ‘for’ the proposition. That’s the highest number we’ve ever had. So I think that does show that the trust is coming back, maybe, but there’s still work to be done, and we’ll continue to do that,” Vasquez said.
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