Temple Independent School District said it will save over $3.6 million over the next 15 years after it was able to price refunding bonds from 2016, which the district says will save taxpayers money. According to TISD, the district was able to refund $40,255,000 of the remaining principal at an interest rate of 3.896%. They say the refunding will result in an estimated savings of $3,671,080 over the 15 years remaining before the final bonds retire in 2041, meaning the district will save an average of nearly $293,000 per year in annual debt service payments beginning in fiscal year 2027. view article

The Fort Worth Independent School District’s board approved a budget on Tuesday evening that leaves the district in a financial hole — but one district leaders expect to be able to climb partway out of in the next few months. The board voted unanimously to approve a $43.6 million deficit budget for the 2025-26 school year. Read more at: https://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/education/article308361185.html#storylink=cpy view article

The Judson ISD board of trustees unanimously approved eliminating 25 vacant non-teaching positions and reducing four vacant nursing staff positions to licensed vocational nurse positions on June 5. The decision will save approximately $1.43 million in the 2025-26 fiscal year budget, according to agenda documents. view article

The Fort Worth Independent School District’s board approved a budget on Tuesday evening that leaves the district in a financial hole — but one district leaders expect to be able to climb partway out of in the next few months. The board voted unanimously to approve a $43.6 million deficit budget for the 2025-26 school year. But district leaders expect that number to shrink to $33 million in the coming months as funding measures that Texas lawmakers recently passed come into effect.  Read more at: https://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/education/article308361185.html#storylink=cpy view article

Four days after Governor Greg Abbott signed House Bill 2 into law, allocating billions in public education funding and creating a new voucher-style program, Abilene ISD Superintendent Dr. John Kuhn is voicing serious concerns. Calling the move a “colossal mistake,” Kuhn claims the new education savings account program threatens to weaken the state’s public school system by diverting funds to private institutions and undermining decades of public education policy. view article

The move comes after trustees voted to close a school, relocate its STEM program, reduce pay for uncertified teachers, modify its library services program and close vacancies to cut costs. Now, they're looking to raise revenue. view article

Texas' largest school district will slash more than 340 central office staff to help fund its bifurcated budget that invests more money into historically underserved students.  HISD will enter its third year under state-appointed leadership implementing what's called the New Education System (NES) at 130 campuses. The strategy is to pour funding into schools that need to improve, totaling thousands of dollars more per student amid long stagnant levels of state funding.  Despite the budget squeeze, Houston ISD's Chief of Staff Monica Zdrojewski said the district can sustain this higher level of funding for NES and work toward a balanced budget. Right now, cuts to communications; facilities, maintenance operations; and purchased services are the district's answer to keeping cuts away from classrooms. view article

Under Houston ISD Superintendent Mike Miles' proposed budget for the 2025-26 school year, campuses under his instructional reform program would receive around $3,500 more per student compared to other schools. Miles said during a budget workshop meeting last week that schools in his New Education System (NES) — 130 of the district's lowest-performing campuses — would receive $10,635 per student, while other campuses would receive $7,103. He attributed the difference to additional learning coaches and special education costs at the NES schools. view article

What is it? The contract allows the district to accept debit and credit card payments for goods and services.  What’s the cost? $143,926  Who’s the vendor? KEV Group  Where’s the funding coming from? General fund What was the vote? 9-0 view article

In a three-year budget model, Georgetown officials are evaluating ways to increase revenue and lower expenses as forecasts show the city’s operating expenses are outpacing revenue sources.   At a May 13 City Council workshop, City Manger David Morgan said Georgetown could be facing an $80 million negative balance in the general fund by fiscal year 2027-28 if no action is taken. “This is not what we will propose, this is not what will happen,” Morgan said during his presentation. “This is ... us making sure that we're doing our due diligence to manage our budget.” view article

Judson Independent School District board members voted against closing three schools late Wednesday night. In the past few months, the district’s board has explored several cost-saving measures to slash a projected $48 million deficit for the next school year, including not having a librarian on every campus, putting a property tax raise up for voter approval that would unlock $12 million for the district and reducing calendar days for certain staff.   Judson ISD’s financial woes are not unique, as nearly every school district in San Antonio faces multi-million budget deficits while being uncertain that the state would pass a public school finance bill before the legislative session ends on June 2.  Earlier this year, North East ISD voted to close three schools to offset a $39 million deficit and address low enrollment and San Antonio ISD closed 15 schools last year for similar reasons.  view article

At an April 2017 committee hearing in a meeting room tucked away in the Capitol’s underground extension, state Sen. Paul Bettencourt, a bespectacled Houston Republican, touted a proposal of his then called Senate Bill 1882. The bill was meant to “turn around” public schools the state had deemed failing by tapping nonprofit charter school operators to take over and implement “innovative practices,” Bettencourt promised. The new system would be a “model of efficiency,” New Braunfels Republican Donna Campbell added to a chorus of bipartisan support. Co-author José Menéndez, a San Antonio Democrat, later told the Texas Observer that he aimed to tap into charter operators’ “highest expertise.”   At the hearing, one public school advocate warned of the proposal’s high cost and lack of accountability, and another requested more protections for public school employees, but their testimonies were largely ignored, and SB 1882 passed. view article

South San Antonio Independent School District will tap into the state’s “disaster pennies” program to unlock $3 million in their budget for one-time expenses. Taken over by the state in February after a Texas Education Agency investigation found the district’s elected board members mismanaged funds and violated governing procedures, the Southside district faces a multi-million dollar budget deficit during a state legislative session that’s been slow to pass a public school funding bill.  view article

Families who qualify for free preschool could use state education savings accounts, known as school vouchers, to pay for highly-rated private preschools.  Signed into law for the first time in Texas history earlier this month, the ESA program allocates $1 billion state dollars for eligible families to cover the cost of private school tuition, therapy and other education-focused costs.  Some families could also use school vouchers to pay for private early education for children age 4, a positive step in addressing early childhood needs, said Mark Larson, executive director or the San Antonio-based early education advocacy group Early Matters. view article

Canutillo Independent School District's board received a mix of good and concerning news regarding its financial situation during a meeting on Thursday night. The district's fiscal outlook has improved slightly compared to a few weeks ago, but challenges remain. view article

Some new Dallas ISD school employees are likely to see pay bumps as trustees raised its minimum wage and starting teacher salary in its 2025-26 budget. Trustees approved a roughly $1.9 billion budget Thursday night that raises staff minimum wages to $17 an hour and offers $64,000 to beginning teachers. Seven trustees voted yes, with Byron Sanders and Joyce Foreman abstaining. view article

Over the past several years, the Ysleta Independent School District board has invested heavily in our staff — raising salaries and providing stipends to recognize their hard work. And just this month, the district took serious steps toward restoring fiscal stability. We approved the sale of two vacant properties, launched a voluntary resignation incentive projected to save $15 million, and identified over $10 million in projected spending cuts. view article

There is big change coming to Austin ISD as the district is beginning the process to close and consolidate schools. The district said the move comes after six years without an increase in school funding from the state, as well as declining enrollment. There were 74,645 students in Austin ISD in the 2021-22 school year and in the 2023-24 school year there were 73,707. view article

Judson Middle School, Candlewood Elementary School and Franz Leadership Academy will remain open for the time being. Board members in the Judson Independent School District passed motions on Wednesday night to not close the campuses. Families and students expressed strong feelings about the potential school closures. The district cited financial hardships and declining enrollment as reasons for considering the closures. view article

Seven teachers in the Socorro Independent School District who were initially laid off as part of budget cuts have been reinstated. The school board unanimously approved their contracts during a meeting on Tuesday night. These positions were among the 43 that the district had cut earlier this month to address a $38 million budget deficit. view article

Fort Worth ISD trustees are set to take their first major step toward shrinking the district’s number of schools to better reflect its declining enrollment.  During its May 20 meeting, the school board is expected to consider a plan outlining 14 school closures over the next four years. If approved, the 14 schools would join four other campuses that trustees previously slated for closure. view article

Fort Bend ISD is built for more than 100,000 students, but recent demographic projections show enrollment stagnating around 80,000 students until 2034, an outlook that could force school closures to save money, officials told a full boardroom Monday. Closing or consolidating some of the 19 elementary campuses with less than 600 students could save the district $13 million, auditors said. view article

Tyler ISD Superintendent Dr. Marty Crawford presented an update on the 89th Legislative Session to the Board of Trustees Monday, which included conversation on school finance, school vouchers, and more. The Senate’s school finance proposal would increase the basic allotment by $55 per student, hundreds less than the version that passed the House. view article

Liberty Hill ISD has reduced its projected budget shortfall for this fiscal year and is nearing a balanced budget for FY 2025-26. The update comes after the district has applied millions of dollars in current and planned budget cuts amid growing financial concerns. view article

The proposal would shift the operation of the lottery to a different agency for a two-year trial period. view article

Senators will hold a hearing Thursday on their counterproposal to the House's school funding bill. House Democrats and public education advocates have criticized the upper chamber for not moving faster to advance the legislation. view article

The Canutillo Independent School District is among the districts in the El Paso area struggling with a budget deficit, leading the district to contemplate significant reductions. At a special meeting scheduled for Wednesday, Canutillo ISD board officials are expected to finalize decisions on addressing the deficit, which the district attributes to inadequate state funding, the pandemic, and increased service demands. view article

Austin Independent School District says it will consolidate schools starting in the 2026-27 school year to avoid deeper budget cuts. In an online release, the district says resources are spread too thin, leaving schools under-resourced. view article

Officials in the Fort Worth Independent School District say that closing and consolidating more than a dozen campuses would save the district millions of dollars over the next five years, allowing them to redirect more money toward academic priorities. District officials presented a proposed five-year facilities plan at a school board meeting Tuesday. The plan includes the closure and consolidation of 18 small and under-enrolled schools, including S.S. Dillow Elementary School, which is scheduled to close this summer due to structural issues.

Fort Worth ISD is in the middle of assembling the final pieces of its 2025-26 school year budget.  Trustees are expected to receive an update on the budget during their May 13 workshop meeting, Chief Financial Officer Carmen Arrieta-Candelaria recently told the school board.   Here’s what you need to know about the financial document, which will focus on jump-starting literacy efforts across the district: view article

Fort Worth ISD is in the middle of assembling the final pieces of its 2025-26 school year budget. Trustees are expected to receive an update on the budget during their May 13 workshop meeting, Chief Financial Officer Carmen Arrieta-Candelaria recently told the school board.   Here’s what you need to know about the financial document, which will focus on jump-starting literacy efforts across the district: view article

As Cy-Fair ISD trustees prepare to approve a budget for fiscal year 2025-26 this June, district leaders said they could struggle to maintain competitive salaries due to the limited funding they receive from the state. CFISD Chief Financial Officer Karen Smith broke down the district’s budget outlook at the May 5 board meeting, including a comparison of neighboring districts’ teacher salaries and the average amount of revenue they receive from the state based on average student attendance. view article

The El Paso Independent School District (EPISD) is considering new strategies to address its financial challenges, as it faces a projected $15 million budget deficit for the upcoming school year. This marks a slight improvement from the previous $17 million shortfall. view article

The Socorro Independent School District's board has officially approved a reduction in force, cutting 43 positions in an effort to address a $38 million budget deficit. The decision, made after months of deliberation, was met with emotional pleas from educators hoping to save their jobs. view article

Houston ISD is two months away from its deadline to finalize next school year's budget, and state-appointed Superintendent Mike Miles said tough decisions are ahead — including cuts to the district's central office. In the district's budget meeting last week, Miles shared his spending proposals with the district's board of managers. They include cuts to nearly every department of the central office, except for the Chief of Staff's office, which may see an increase. view article