The era of massive state budget surpluses in Texas could be coming to an end.  As the last of the federal government’s COVID-19 emergency funds are spent and sales tax revenues return to historic averages after a large spike, budget analysts say state lawmakers will have far less wiggle room when it comes to funding their spending priorities.    “I don’t think we’re in any kind of crisis, but I think the days of big budget surpluses are probably over,” said Bill King, a fellow in public finance for Rice University’s Baker Institute of Public Policy. “We’re going to be very careful how we spend money.”  In addition to federal pandemic aid, sales tax revenues from inflation and a post-lockdown economic rebound led to state budget surpluses. Texas lawmakers leaned on a $33 billion surplus in 2023 to pay for an $18 billion property tax-cut package, a $5 billion infusion for the new Texas Energy Fund and a host of infrastructure projects. Lawmakers entered this year’s legislative session with a $24 billion surplus, which helped to maintain previous tax-cuts; upgrade energy, water and broadband infrastructure; and cover other new spending items in the upcoming two-year budget cycle. view article

Beaumont ISD unveiled its future budget plans at the most recent school board meeting, and teacher raises figured heavily into the district's plans for the 2025-2026 school year. The district was recognized for its six-year track record of fiscal responsibility heading into the next budget cycle, particularly for having a non-deficit budget, chief financial officer Cheryl Hernandez told the board during her presentation. view article

Raises for most Humble ISD employees will range between 3%-7% in fiscal year 2025-26, HISD Chief Financial Officer Billy Beattie said during a June 17 meeting. Trustees approved HISD's budget and compensation plan for FY 2025-26 during the meeting. According to budget documents, the adopted general fund budget for FY 2025-26 includes $543.6 million in expenses, $543.7 million in revenue and a proposed tax rate of $1.1052 per $100 valuation-the same as FY 2024-25. view article

Veteran teachers in Katy ISD will no longer receive benchmark raises in the 2025-26 school year. Instead, the district will use the funds to provide raises and stipends for new teachers and other employees not covered by the state’s $28.9 million compensation package for the district. view article

The Houston Independent School District has released its 2025–2026 Compensation Plan, outlining changes that will tie teacher pay increases to performance evaluations rather than years of service. The plan continues the district’s ongoing shift toward performance-based compensation and comes as HISD implements broader reforms across the school system. view article

In a budget presentation June 24, the Conroe ISD board of trustees discussed a 2025-26 compensation plan including 6% raises for teachers and staff and a 4% raise for police and other administrative positions. view article

Austin ISD trustees have approved a new budget for the 2025–26 school year, one that still leaves the district tens of millions of dollars in the red. Despite months of cost-cutting, layoffs, and new state funding, the budget closes with a $47.3 million deficit. That includes a $19.7 million shortfall in the district’s general fund, which pays for daily operations like teacher salaries, transportation, and school services. view article

The board of trustees adopted the district’s budget for the 2025-26 school year during a special board meeting June 26 for $413.4 million. Chief Operations Officer John Allison said the budget is required to include a general, debt service and child nutrition fund. view article

The Judson Independent School District board is cutting early childhood education, athletics, staff positions and employee workdays in an effort to offset a historic budget deficit. The board has undergone a dramatic shift since the May 3 election, with the addition of three new trustees who ran campaigns on the need to address the district’s fiscal crisis more aggressively. At the behest of a new majority and its pariah-turned-presiding president, the seven-member board has spent the last month working tirelessly to reduce expenses. view article

The Comal Independent School District board of trustees approved pay increases for all teachers and staff members on Thursday, according to a news release. The raises are part of the district’s $341 million budget for the 2025-26 school year and were made possible by Texas House Bill 2 and the Teacher Retention Allotment (TRA). view article

Teachers and staff across Katy Independent School District will see pay increases in the upcoming school year under a compensation plan approved by the district’s board of trustees. The raises, funded through a mix of local resources and a new state law, aim to boost recruitment and retention across all levels of school staff. view article

Georgetown ISD has adopted a nearly $170.27 million balanced budget for fiscal year 2025-26.The board of trustees approved the district’s FY 2025-25 budget at a June 16 meeting. To avoid facing a budget shortfall, the district made $3.73 million in cuts across campuses and district departments, including athletics and special education.  “The board asked a year ago for what we knew was a tough task: To come to a balanced budget and to make some really hard decisions,” school board President James Scherer said. “The work [district officials] did put us in one of the strongest positions in Central Texas to not only allow us to continue to take care of teachers and staff, but to allow us to keep protecting ... and educating our children.” view article

Cy-Fair ISD is planning to use $45 million of savings to help provide raises and reinstate bus routes for 2025-26, officials said Wednesday.   While leaders expressed gratitude for the increased funding that came with the $8.5 billion the Texas Legislature gave to public schools this year, Superintendent Douglas Killian said it still isn’t enough.  After outcry from the community about busing cuts last summer, the board plans to vote on reinstating routes on Monday night, in addition to routes previously brought back. view article

The El Paso District unveiled the results of a long-awaited equity audit, which many in the community had anticipated before decisions on school closures were made. The audit, presented at the district headquarters, has been a focal point for years, with community members urging for its release before any closures. view article

College Station ISD’s Board of Trustees finalized the district’s 2025-26 school year budget during Tuesday night’s meeting, and the updated financial plan reflects both benefits and challenges for the district and staff. The district implemented a $2.1 million deficit budget for the upcoming school year despite increased state funding. “When you’re going into a deficit, your CFO’s (chief financial officer) going to be extremely concerned. But we’re going to continue to work hard, make sure that we can look for efficiencies, and then try to shave off a little bit more,” advised Heather Wilson, College Station ISD’s CFO. view article

The New Braunfels Independent School District (NBISD) announced that all eligible staff will receive a 2% raise for the 2025-26 school year. This decision follows the Monday, June 17th, Board of Trustees meeting where it received unanimous approval. In addition to the general pay increase, eligible classroom teachers will benefit from the Teacher Retention Allotment, a provision of Texas House Bill 2. view article

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Trustees for the North East Independent School District approved a compensation package Monday that largely aligns with the new school funding law House Bill 2. The law gives districts a relatively robust allotment to boost the salaries of experienced classroom teachers, and a smaller allotment for support staff. NEISD leaders told trustees the law's targeted funding limits their ability to give raises to other employees, including counselors, nurses, and librarians. view article

College Station ISD’s Board of Trustees finalized the district’s 2025-26 school year budget during Tuesday night’s meeting, and the updated financial plan reflects both benefits and challenges for the district and staff. The district implemented a $2.1 million deficit budget for the upcoming school year despite increased state funding. “When you’re going into a deficit, your CFO’s going to be extremely concerned, but we’re going to continue to work hard, make sure that we can look for efficiencies and then try to shave off a little bit more,” CSISD Chief Financial Officer Heather Wilson stated. During the meeting, the Board approved a compensation plan in line with recently passed House Bill 2, which ties new state funding directly to classroom teachers. view article

Austin ISD is trying to slash up to $10 million in spending by restructuring its central administrative office. Staff will learn the future of their positions Wednesday. “The process will include eliminating positions, reassignments, new reporting structures and pay scales,” district officials told KUT News in an email. The changes at the central office, which will take effect on Aug. 1, are part of an ongoing effort to reduce Austin ISD’s budget deficit, which currently totals about $93 million. view article

With the regular session of the 89th Texas Legislature over, Tyler ISD is set to implement some changes, among them- pay raises for teachers. During Monday night’s school board meeting, Tyler ISD Superintendent Dr. Marty Crawford outlined how the district will be impacted by HB 2, which provides $8.5 billion for public education funding, including teacher pay raises. He said the certified starting teacher salary for those with one year of experience is expected to increase by $1,500 to $52,000, with salary bumps for educators with more years of experience. view article

During a state legislative session where education issues took center stage and Gov. Greg Abbott promised to fund public schools, one San Antonio area school district could potentially lose money under the new bill. view article

Teachers and employees in Pearland ISD will be getting a pay bump in the upcoming school year after the district’s board approved $8.7 million in raises and stipends at its June 10 meeting. The compensation package includes nearly $8.4 million in salary increases and about $310,000 in stipends, district agenda documents show. view article

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