Prop 407: Should HUSD Borrow $79.6 Million to Fix Its Schools?
Your school district wants to borrow money to fix old buildings and buy new buses. An old school loan is being paid off this year, and this one would take its place. Here's what it costs you, what it buys, and the one comparison the yard signs skip.
This year's bill already charges 63 cents for the old school loan. If property values keep growing like they have, a yes vote keeps the rate a bit below that, then lets it fall.
The whole thing in 60 seconds
Humboldt Unified wants to borrow up to $79.6 million. Most of it, $73.6 million, would fix and improve school buildings, grounds and security. The other $6 million would buy buses.PAMPHLET P.8
Property owners would pay it back through their tax bills over about 24 years. For the average home, that's about $96 a year on average. It costs more in the first few years and less later.PAMPHLET P.5-6
An old school loan gets its last payment from this year's taxes. Compared to the bill you just got, the rate would go down a little. Compared to voting no, it costs more, because no means that tax ends.PAMPHLET P.5 Both are true.
The quick facts
What happens if you vote yes or no?
A yes vote doesn't hand the district a check. It gives the district permission to borrow. It plans to borrow in chunks through 2032, as projects are ready.PAMPHLET P.6
Yes means the district can borrow up to $79.6 million for repairs and buses, and the school bond line stays on your tax bill. No means no new loan, and that line goes away after this year. Either way, the schools stay open. The vote is about who pays for the repairs, and how.PAMPHLET P.12PAMPHLET P.5
The official voter pamphlet gets mailed to every home with a registered voter in the district.PAMPHLET BACK COVER It has the exact ballot question, the full tax schedule, and every argument that was filed. Sixteen people and groups wrote in support. Nobody filed an argument against.PAMPHLET P.9-12 Read the pamphlet here. The English part is 13 pages.PAMPHLET COVER
What's a bond, anyway?
A bond is a loan. The district borrows money now and pays it back over many years, with interest. The payments come from property taxes.PAMPHLET P.4 Schools in Arizona get money from three places, and people mix them up a lot. Prop 407 is only about the first one.
Bond
A loan for big things that last a long time, like roofs, air conditioners and buses. Voters say yes or no. Property owners pay it back.PAMPHLET P.4
Override
Extra money for everyday costs, like teacher pay. Voters have to approve this too. Humboldt asked for one in 2020, and it lost.AZBEX
Regular budget
State money for paychecks, supplies, power bills and small fixes. The district says big jobs, like a whole new roof, cost more than this budget can handle.HUSD WHY
Pop quiz: can bond money pay for it?
0 of 10 answeredThe money has to stay inside the purposes on the ballot. Inside those, the school board picks which jobs happen first. The pamphlet puts $0 toward administration.PAMPHLET P.8 That's normal for school bonds. It's also why it matters that people keep an eye on the spending afterward.
How much would you pay?
Your school tax isn't based on what your house would sell for. It's based on a much smaller number. Here's how to find yours in about a minute.
Find your property tax notice from Yavapai County. Look for the line that says limited value (sometimes "LPV").PAMPHLET P.6
Take 10% of it if it's a home or rental. That's your taxable value. The county calls it "net assessed value."PAMPHLET P.4
Type your limited value below. The calculator uses the pamphlet's official rates.
$21,783 / 100 x $0.4415 = $96.17 a year
*The pamphlet's business examples use 15.5%. Arizona lowers it to 15% for 2027 and after, so a business bill may come in a little lower.PAMPHLET P.6 This is an estimate, not a bill.
The pamphlet's own examples
| Property | Limited value | Taxed on | Taxable value | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home | $100,000 | 10% | $10,000 | $44.15 | $3.68 |
| Average home in HUSD | $217,828 | 10% | $21,783 | $96.17 | $8.01 |
| Business | $500,000 | 15.5% | $77,500 | $342.16 | $28.51 |
| Average business in HUSD | $671,998 | 15.5% | $104,160 | $459.86 | $38.32 |
| Average empty lot in HUSD | $40,478 | 15% | $6,072 | $26.81 | $2.23 |
| Empty lot | $75,000 | 15% | $11,250 | $49.67 | $4.14 |
The district's tax page calls $217,828 "assessed value." The pamphlet calls it "limited property value."HUSD TAXPAMPHLET P.4 Your county notice calls it "limited value." They're all the same number. On this page we just say limited value, and we say taxable value for the smaller number the rate is based on. If you use your home's sale price instead, you'll think you owe way more than you do.
You won't get this bill
Your landlord will. Will some of it show up in your rent? Maybe. It depends on the rental market, and nobody can promise it either way.
You pay a bigger share
Business property is taxed on 15% to 15.5% of its value instead of 10%. So a shop pays more than a house worth the same amount.AZ LEGISLATURE
Programs that can lower your bill
Arizona's homeowner rebate doesn't cover bond taxes like this one.A.R.S. 15-972 But the Yavapai County Assessor runs programs that can help.
For homeowners 65 and older who meet income limits. It freezes your home's limited value for 3 years. Your tax rates can still change, but the value they're applied to stays put. Apply by early September for the next tax year.SIGNALS AZ
For widows, widowers, people who are totally disabled, and disabled veterans who meet income and value limits. It lowers the taxable value of your property.A.R.S. 42-11111 Apply early in the year. The 2026 deadline was February 28.SIGNALS AZ
A small state income tax credit for very low-income homeowners and renters who are 65 or older or on SSI. You claim it on Arizona Form 140PTC.AZ DEPT. OF REVENUE
Wait. Will my taxes go up or not?
The district says Prop 407 won't raise the tax rate. The ballot itself says the bonds "will result in a property tax increase."PAMPHLET P.4, P.12 Both of those are true at the same time, which is a very school-bond thing to happen. It depends on what you compare it to. Tap each one.
The tax bill you got this fall charges 63 cents per $100 for the old school loan. That's its last year. If Prop 407 passes, next year's rate would be 59 cents, then 60 cents for a few years, then lower.PAMPHLET P.5 On the average home, that's about $137 this year and about $129 next year.
If Prop 407 fails, the school bond line on your bill drops to zero next year.PAMPHLET P.5 That's why the ballot says "tax increase." State law requires that sentence on every bond ballot paid for with property taxes. It compares a yes vote to having no bond at all.A.R.S. 35-454 On the average home, the choice is about $129 next year with a yes, or $0 with a no.
The rate starts near 60 cents. It drops as the district's property values grow and the yearly payments shrink. It falls to 12 cents in the final two years, 2049 to 2051. The average over the whole loan is 44.15 cents.PAMPHLET P.5
The school bond rate on HUSD tax bills
The old school loans were refinanced in 2017 and again in 2021, the way you might refinance a mortgage to get a lower rate. The 2021 refinance cut about $1.4 million off the district's future payments.HUSD AUDIT 2021 Each year's rate depends on that year's payment and on property values, so it moved around. The last payment is covered by this year's taxes.HUSD AUDIT 2023PAMPHLET P.5
The district's rates assume property values in HUSD grow about 7.5% a year through 2032.PAMPHLET P.5 That's close to recent history. From 2023 to 2026, values grew about 7% a year.COUNTY 2023 If growth slowed to 5% a year, our math puts the peak rate near 67 cents, a few cents above this year's 63. The plan sells bonds in phases "as needed," so the district could sell more slowly to hold the rate down. That would also slow down the repairs.
Prop 407 keeps a school bond tax going at a little less than you pay now, as long as values keep growing, and it shrinks over time. "No tax increase" is true next to this year's bill. It isn't true next to a no vote.PAMPHLET P.5
What does it cost, year by year?
$79.6 million is how much the district can borrow. Add interest, and the pamphlet estimates the full payback at $121.2 million.PAMPHLET P.6 Here's how it spreads out. Tap any year to see what your property would pay.
The district expects to borrow in chunks through 2032. Each chunk has to be paid off within 20 years. The math assumes about 5% interest. The law caps it at 12%, so a higher rate would cost more. Each sale also costs about $75,000 in fees.PAMPHLET P.6 If the district borrows less than $79.6 million, every number here shrinks.
What would the money fix?
The pamphlet splits the money two ways. $73.6 million goes to fixing and upgrading buildings, grounds, security and infrastructure. $6 million goes to buses. $0 goes to administration.PAMPHLET P.8
Parking lots, outside paint, heating and air conditioning, plumbing, roofs and buses. The district says some of these jobs were already approved by the state's school facilities office but have waited more than four years for state money.PAMPHLET P.3 Supporters who wrote arguments add that HUSD's schools are 20 to 74 years old.PAMPHLET P.10
School buses
One of them has gone around the Earth almost 10 times
What's wrong
The district says some buses are past their useful life and keep needing repairs. It posted a photo of one odometer. The caption reads 2429811. Odometers show tenths of a mile, so that's most likely 242,981 miles.HUSD PROJECTS The Earth is about 24,900 miles around. So that one bus has driven far enough to circle the Earth almost 10 times.
The fix
$6 million to swap old buses for newer ones.PAMPHLET P.8
Heating and air conditioning
Lots of old systems, fixed one breakdown at a time
What's wrong
The district says many heating and cooling parts are past their expected life. Right now, units get replaced only when they break. Many original systems are still running.HUSD PROJECTS
The fix
Replace old equipment with newer systems that break down less.
Roofs and outside walls
Old roofs mean leaks
What's wrong
Some roofs and outside walls have reached the end of their life, which makes leaks more likely. The district's photos are labeled "PRMS Roof Damage." PRMS is Pronghorn Ridge Middle School.HUSD PROJECTS A teacher wrote in the pamphlet that a rainstorm flooded several classrooms at one of her schools. Moving classes around during the repairs disrupted the whole school year for her students, young kids with special needs.PAMPHLET P.9
The fix
New roofs and repairs to the outside of buildings.
Outdoor stairs
Rust you can see in the photos
What's wrong
Some outdoor stairways are rusting and wearing out. The photos are labeled "BMHS," for Bradshaw Mountain High School.HUSD PROJECTS
The fix
Tear them out and build new stairs that meet today's safety code.
Building repairs
Wear and tear from age and weather
What's wrong
Some parts that hold buildings up have worn down from age and weather. The photo shows a brick column with pipes bracing it.HUSD PROJECTS Another pamphlet argument describes a sinking classroom floor approved for repair more than four years ago that still hasn't been funded.PAMPHLET P.11
The fix
Repair and strengthen those parts.
Why is the district asking now?
Two reasons. The old school loan is ending, so a new one can replace it without raising the rate. And the state mostly stopped paying for big school repairs years ago.PAMPHLET P.3-4
In 1998, Arizona passed a law that was supposed to send schools repair money every year using a formula. Later, the state swapped that formula for grants. Now a district has to apply for each project, one at a time.KAWC From 1998 to 2013, the formula said schools should get $2.8 billion. The state paid $647.5 million. That's about 23 cents on the dollar.FACILITIESNET
The state still pays for some repairs. But the district says some jobs the state already approved have waited more than four years for the money to show up.PAMPHLET P.3 One pamphlet argument says state rules only pay to swap broken parts for identical ones, even when those parts aren't made anymore.PAMPHLET P.11-12 A bond lets the district pick the fix that makes sense.
A judge thinks so. In August 2025, a Maricopa County judge ruled that Arizona's system for paying for school buildings doesn't meet the state constitution.COURT RULING In March 2026, he gave lawmakers eight months to fix it.AZ MIRROR Legislative leaders appealed.KAWC As of the latest reporting we found, the appeal was still going.KJZZ So nobody knows yet when new state money might come, or how much. If more does show up later, the district doesn't have to borrow the full $79.6 million. The ballot sets a limit, not a requirement.PAMPHLET P.12
How we got here
Is that true? Claims, checked
Nobody filed an argument against Prop 407. So most of what you'll hear comes from supporters, the district, or general "taxes are on the ballot" posts. The county school superintendent's note in the pamphlet says some numbers in the arguments weren't checked by that office.PAMPHLET P.3 So we checked them. Tap a claim.
What's true
This year's school bond rate is 63 cents. The new bond's highest projected rate is 60 cents, and it drops from there.PAMPHLET P.5 The district's own wording is careful: it says the rate is "not expected" to go up.PAMPHLET P.4
The catch
That projection assumes property values grow about 7.5% a year through 2032.PAMPHLET P.5 Recent growth has been about 7%.COUNTY 2023 Slower growth would push the rate up a few cents. And "current rate" means the old bond's rate. If Prop 407 fails, the tax ends instead. So next to a no vote, yes costs more.
"It's planned to stay a little below today's school bond rate. If it fails, that tax ends."
What's true
That sentence is on the ballot.PAMPHLET P.12 State law requires it on every bond paid for with property taxes.A.R.S. 35-454 It compares a yes vote to having no bond at all. It doesn't compare to the tax you pay right now.
"It's a tax compared to no bond. It's not a rate increase compared to today."
What's true
Over the whole loan, the average home pays $96.17 a year, or $8.01 a month.PAMPHLET P.6
The catch
The first five years cost more, about $11 a month. The last years cost less, about $2 a month.PAMPHLET P.5
"About $8 a month on average. A bit more at first, a lot less later."
What's true
$79.6 million is the most the district can borrow. With interest, the pamphlet estimates $121.2 million paid back in total.PAMPHLET P.6
"$79.6 million borrowed. About $121 million paid back."
What's true
We ran it. $400,000 times 10% is $40,000 of taxable value. At 44 cents per $100, that's $176 a year.PAMPHLET P.11 The point is that new homes alone can't pay for old buildings.
"Math checks out. Growth helps, but it doesn't cover the repairs by itself."
What's true
The argument is on page 9.PAMPHLET P.9 The judge's August 2025 ruling says the system "does not meet the constitutional minimum standards."COURT RULING State legislative leaders appealed it.KAWC
"A judge ruled the state's school building funding unconstitutional. The state is appealing."
What's true
The pamphlet says bonds can't be used for administration or employee salaries.PAMPHLET P.4 State law also blocks spending it on things that won't last 5 years.A.R.S. 15-1021 Pay raises need a different kind of vote, called an override. That isn't on this ballot.
"Bonds pay for buildings and buses. Paychecks come from a different pot."
What's true
Renters don't get the tax bill. Landlords do. Rentals are taxed on the same 10% as homes.A.R.S. 42-15004 Some of the cost might end up in rent. How much depends on the rental market, and it changes.
"Not directly, and maybe through rent. Nobody can promise either way."
Why is Prescott's school bond so much cheaper?
Prescott Unified has its own bond on the same ballot. It's called Prop 406. It asks for $20 million at about 7 cents per $100.PUSD NOTICE Someone is going to post that in a comment thread. Here's what's really going on.
Most of the gap is size. Humboldt is asking for about four times as much money.
The rest of the gap is home values. Even when you compare the same $10 million, Humboldt's rate is higher. That's because there's less property value in the district to share the cost. Prescott's average home has a limited value of $374,560. Humboldt's is $217,828.PUSD NOTICEPAMPHLET P.4
So each dollar Humboldt borrows costs local owners a bit more. The other big difference: Humboldt's new rate replaces a 63-cent rate that's ending this year.PAMPHLET P.5
Depending on where you live, you might also see county Prop 497 (a sales tax for the jail) and Prescott Valley's Prop 493 (a sales tax for a rec center).SAMPLE BALLOTS Those are sales taxes. Prop 407 is a property tax. They don't change each other's math. They do all come out of the same wallet. Read our Prop 493 explainer.
What does Together Strong think?
We support Prop 407.
School buildings are where kids learn and where teachers work. When a roof leaks into a classroom or the air conditioning quits, learning stops. A teacher wrote in the pamphlet about a storm that flooded several classrooms. The room changes during repairs disrupted a whole school year for her students with special needs.PAMPHLET P.9 Families who can't pay for another option feel that the most.
The cost is small for most households. The average home pays about $96 a year on average. The pamphlet's biggest example, a $1 million business property, pays about $756 a year.PAMPHLET P.6 And if values keep growing like they have, the rate starts a little below what's on this year's bill.PAMPHLET P.5
The district has handled debt carefully before. It refinanced its old bonds in 2021 and cut about $1.4 million in payments.HUSD AUDIT 2021 State law keeps the money on things that last at least 5 years.A.R.S. 15-1021
A yes vote still costs more than a no vote. We think it's worth it.
What we're asking the district to do
Show the list behind the estimate
Post the project estimates behind the $79.6 million, including the state-approved jobs still waiting for money.PAMPHLET P.3 Then report real costs as bids come in.
Pick a citizen oversight group
If it passes, let regular residents review bids and progress, with public notes. The district says it "may" do this.HUSD TAX We'd like a "will."
Report back every year
One plain page a year: how much was borrowed, at what interest, and what got fixed where.
Borrow only what's needed
Borrow in chunks as jobs are ready. Every dollar not borrowed lowers the rate.
What's still open?
A few things won't be known until after the vote, or haven't been published. Here's where to look.
The estimates behind the $79.6 million
Final costs for each project get set later, through design and bidding, as the district sells bonds in phases.PAMPHLET P.6 That's how a phased bond works. The pamphlet splits the money into two categories: $73.6 million for buildings and $6 million for buses.PAMPHLET P.8 The project pages describe five types of work.HUSD PROJECTS What hasn't been published is the estimate behind the total, including the jobs the state already approved that have waited more than four years for money.PAMPHLET P.3 The district's FAQ mentions a "Complete Project List" page.HUSD FAQ The bond section's menu doesn't link one.HUSD BOND PAGE A 2026 state bill would have required school-by-school lists in every bond pamphlet. The governor vetoed it.AZ SENATE
The real interest rate
It's set when each chunk of bonds is sold. The pamphlet assumes 5%. The cap is 12%.PAMPHLET P.6
Who's paying for the campaign
The committee supporting Prop 407 is "A Strong Community Building Strong Schools."PAMPHLET P.10 We found no committee opposing it.
Board meeting records
The district's agendas, minutes and financial reports are posted on its BoardDocs site.
How do I vote on this?
Only people who live inside Humboldt Unified's lines get Prop 407 on their ballot. That's most of Prescott Valley and Dewey-Humboldt, but not every street. Your sample ballot will tell you.SAMPLE BALLOTSHUSD MAP
Your Prop 407 to-do list
Questions people ask
No. Props 492 and 493 are Town of Prescott Valley measures. Prop 407 is a school district measure. Only people inside the school district vote on it.
If you own property in HUSD, yes. Every taxable property in the district helps pay, kids or no kids.PAMPHLET P.6 If you rent, you won't get a bill.
The district can borrow up to $79.6 million, a chunk at a time. It expects to finish borrowing by 2032. The first payments show up on tax bills in fall 2027. The last ones show up in fall 2050.PAMPHLET P.5-6
The old school bond tax ends after this year, and no new one starts. The district would keep using its regular budget and state grants for repairs. It says delays will make repairs more expensive later.PAMPHLET P.3 It could ask voters again in a later election, like it did in 2018 and 2020.
A little. It has to stay inside the purposes on the ballot.PAMPHLET P.12 Inside those, the board picks the jobs and the order. It can't spend the money on anything that won't last 5 years.PAMPHLET P.4A.R.S. 15-1021
The district says that, "as appropriate," it may set up committees to review project estimates, bids, timelines and progress.HUSD TAX We're asking it to promise one.
On the property tax notice or bill you get from Yavapai County. Look for "limited" or "LPV." It's usually lower than what your home would sell for.PAMPHLET P.6
More yes votes than no votes. That's the normal rule for Arizona school bonds.
Sixteen arguments for, zero against. Supporters include the Prescott Valley mayor, two town councilmembers, the Prescott Valley Chamber of Commerce, the Prescott Area Association of REALTORS, the League of Women Voters of Central Yavapai County, the Mountain Institute career school board chair, a HUSD teacher, and several residents.PAMPHLET P.9-12
Together Strong runs on donations, and our rule is simple: donations never buy our opinion on any measure. That includes this one.
The tax words, in normal words
Check our work
Official documents come first. Opinion pieces and meeting summaries are labeled.
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