What is a VATRE in Texas?

A voter-approval tax rate election. When a school board adopts a maintenance and operations tax rate above the voter-approval rate the state calculates, the adopted rate takes effect only if a majority of voters ratify it at an election. Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD's is Proposition A on November 3, 2026.

How much is the EMS ISD tax rate for 2026?

$1.2857 per $100 of taxable value, adopted by the board on August 10, 2026: $0.7869 maintenance and operations plus $0.4988 debt service. It stands only if Proposition A passes; otherwise the rate falls by four cents to about $1.2457, the prior-year level.

What does the EMS ISD election cost a homeowner in 76179?

About $64 a year on a $300,000 homestead after the $140,000 state school exemption (four cents on $160,000 of school-taxable value), and about $120 a year on a $300,000 non-homestead property such as a rental.

Does the EMS ISD election affect homeowners over 65?

Homeowners 65 and older or disabled have a school tax ceiling under Tax Code 11.26 that freezes the dollar amount of their school tax, plus an additional $60,000 exemption; the district's page says the election will not raise their school taxes. Confirm your own exemption status with the Tarrant Appraisal District.

When is early voting for the November 3, 2026 election in Tarrant County?

The district's page lists early voting October 19 through October 30, 2026, with election day on Tuesday, November 3, 2026.

Which school district is 76179 in?

Mostly Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD, but the ZIP does not decide it. Use the district's attendance-zone maps or the Tarrant Appraisal District record for the exact address; parts of 76179 sit in other districts.

Tarrant County · Owner Guide

What is the Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD tax election on November 3, 2026, and what does it do to a 76179 tax bill?

By Andrew ChavisOctober 17, 20265 min read

The Short Answer

It is a voter-approval tax rate election (a VATRE). On August 10, 2026 the Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD board adopted a 2026 tax rate of $1.2857 per $100 of taxable value ($0.7869 maintenance and operations plus $0.4988 debt service), which is above the district's voter-approval rate, so under Texas law the voters have to ratify it on November 3, 2026 (Proposition A). The district says the adopted rate adds four cents of maintenance tax and about $6.16 million a year, and that a separate proposition would move school-bus purchases from the maintenance budget into bond debt. Early voting runs October 19-30, 2026. On a Saginaw, Texas (Tarrant County, 76179) homestead with a $300,000 appraised value and the $140,000 school exemption, the four cents are worth about $64 a year; a no vote drops the rate by those four cents and the district's budget by the $6.16 million. Sources: EMS ISD Notice of Voter-Approval Tax Rate Election and the district's 2026 VATRE and bond page, both read October 17, 2026.

What Proposition A Actually Asks

The district's notice puts it in one sentence: the board adopted a rate that "exceeds the voter-approval rate," so the adopted rate stands only if a majority ratifies it. The adopted 2026 rate is $1.2857 per $100 of taxable value, split $0.7869 for maintenance and operations (M&O, the part that pays teachers, buses, utilities) and $0.4988 for interest and sinking (I&S, the part that pays bond debt). The district's election page describes the question as four additional maintenance cents, about $6 million a year, and says the adopted rate raises M&O revenue by $6,159,156, or 5.23 percent over the prior year. The prior year's total rate was $1.2457, so the headline change is a four-cent increase, from $1.2457 to $1.2857.

What Yes and No Mean on a 76179 Home

Take a homestead in Saginaw, Texas appraised at $300,000. The state school homestead exemption is $140,000 (Texas Tax Code 11.13(b), Comptroller), so the school-taxable value is $160,000. Four cents per $100 on $160,000 is $64 a year. The full school line at $1.2857 on that value is $2,057.12; at $1.2457 it is $1,993.12. For a rental or any non-homestead property there is no $140,000 exemption, so the same four cents on a $300,000 value is $120 a year. Over 65 or disabled: those homeowners carry an additional $60,000 exemption and a school tax ceiling under Tax Code 11.26, which freezes the dollar amount of their school tax; the district's page says the election will not raise their school taxes, which is the ceiling at work, not a different rate. A no vote means the rate falls back by the four cents and the district does not get the $6.16 million.

The Bus Proposition, Separately

The district's page describes a second item: a school bus bond proposition that shifts bus purchases out of the maintenance budget and into bond debt (the I&S side). Bond debt is repaid from the debt-service rate, which was adopted at $0.4988 for 2026 and is not the part of the rate on the Proposition A ballot. The district says tax-impact examples for the bond will be added to its page; as of October 17, 2026 none were posted, so no dollar figure is given here.

Where It Sits in the Whole 76179 Bill

The school district is the largest line on a Saginaw tax statement. For a Saginaw city address in EMS ISD, the 2026 stack per $100 is: City of Saginaw $0.586649, EMS ISD $1.2857 (pending), Tarrant County $0.186, Tarrant County Hospital District $0.159 (proposed on the county's Truth-in-Taxation summary; adoption not confirmed as of October 17), Tarrant County College $0.120, and the Tarrant Regional Water District $0.0273 (proposed). That is about $2.36 per $100 before exemptions, and the school line is more than half of it. If Proposition A fails, the stack drops to about $2.32. Fort Worth addresses inside 76179 swap the city line to Fort Worth's $0.70565.

Dates and Where to Look

Early voting: October 19 through October 30, 2026. Election day: Tuesday, November 3, 2026. The adopted rate, the M&O and I&S split, and the revenue figures are in the district's Notice of Voter-Approval Tax Rate Election; the plain-language description is on the district's 2026 VATRE and bond page. Which school a 76179 address attends is a separate question answered by the district's attendance-zone maps, not by the ZIP; 76179 straddles Saginaw and Fort Worth, and a few addresses sit in other districts. Tax bills reflecting the ratified or reduced rate mail from the Tarrant County Tax Office after the election; January 31, 2027 is a Sunday, so a payment on Monday, February 1 is still timely (Tax Code 1.06).

How We Read It

We manage rentals in Saginaw and Fort Worth addresses inside 76179, so the school line is in every owner statement we read. We do not tell owners or buyers how to vote. We tell them the number: four cents per $100 on the school-taxable value, which is $64 a year on a typical exempted homestead and $120 on an unexempted rental at $300,000, and that the rest of the stack is set by the other units' own adoptions (two of them still listed as proposed on October 17). The sources are linked below with the dates we read them.

Common Questions

What is a VATRE in Texas?: A voter-approval tax rate election. When a school board adopts a maintenance and operations tax rate above the voter-approval rate the state calculates, the adopted rate takes effect only if a majority of voters ratify it at an election. Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD's is Proposition A on November 3, 2026.
How much is the EMS ISD tax rate for 2026?: $1.2857 per $100 of taxable value, adopted by the board on August 10, 2026: $0.7869 maintenance and operations plus $0.4988 debt service. It stands only if Proposition A passes; otherwise the rate falls by four cents to about $1.2457, the prior-year level.
What does the EMS ISD election cost a homeowner in 76179?: About $64 a year on a $300,000 homestead after the $140,000 state school exemption (four cents on $160,000 of school-taxable value), and about $120 a year on a $300,000 non-homestead property such as a rental.
Does the EMS ISD election affect homeowners over 65?: Homeowners 65 and older or disabled have a school tax ceiling under Tax Code 11.26 that freezes the dollar amount of their school tax, plus an additional $60,000 exemption; the district's page says the election will not raise their school taxes. Confirm your own exemption status with the Tarrant Appraisal District.
When is early voting for the November 3, 2026 election in Tarrant County?: The district's page lists early voting October 19 through October 30, 2026, with election day on Tuesday, November 3, 2026.
Which school district is 76179 in?: Mostly Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD, but the ZIP does not decide it. Use the district's attendance-zone maps or the Tarrant Appraisal District record for the exact address; parts of 76179 sit in other districts.