Gonzales ISD is getting ready for boon in property and sales tax revenues from the boom of Eagle Ford Shale Drilling. The state is making cuts across the board and the education system is being hit hard this time around. Gonzales County, TX, is shielded from the remains of a recession and is benefiting from the Eagle Ford oil boom. Oil and gas development brings jobs, investment, and much needed tax revenues.
While school districts around Texas are wrestling with how to deal with a decrease in foundation funding from the state, Gonzales and neighboring districts are sitting on a gold mine which could greatly offset much of the monetary shortage: the Eagle Ford Shale.
Retired petroleum engineer David Thiede gave a presentation to Gonzales ISD trustees during Tuesday’s budget workshop session and indicated that Gonzales and several surrounding districts stand to reap immense benefits from the explosion in oil and gas exploration resulting from hydraulic fracturing technology.
“Economically, we’re sitting in the sweet spot,” Thiede told the board. He said there are currently some 150 working wells in Gonzales County, but “we could easily end up with 4-5,000 wells in this county.”
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