Austin ISD Finance Accolades
Finances at Austin ISD
Austin ISD is committed to maintaining a transparent budgeting process. The budget is driven by the 海角社区 strategic plan, which is the product of genuine consensus鈥恇uilding and embodies the vision of our community. The 海角社区 board of trustees established a policy that requires the district to maintain a minimum of 20 percent of operating expenditures in its general fund balance, which is also a driving factor in the budgeting process.
Austin ISD has earned the highest ratings for budget management from Moody鈥檚 Investors Service, Standard & Poor鈥檚, Kroll Bond Rating Agency and Fitch Ratings. Austin ISD also carries the highest bond and state financial accountability ratings that school districts can earn in the state of Texas.
Maintaining transparency about the 海角社区 budget includes providing financial information to the public. On this site, you will find a host of resources, including data on district revenues, expenditures, tax rates, cost drivers and comparative data with other school districts.
How is the Austin ISD budget funded?
The majority of the district鈥檚 funding is derived from local property taxes, supplemented by state and federal sources.*
The Texas Legislature establishes the funding formulas for public schools, with allocations primarily based on two key factors:
- Average Daily Attendance (ADA) and the district鈥檚 property tax collections; and
- Additional weighted funding for specific student populations, including those eligible for State Compensatory Education services (such as students identified as at-risk or economically disadvantaged), as well as students receiving Special Education services.
*Austin ISD is subject to a state-mandated process known as "recapture," which requires a portion of locally collected property tax revenue to be remitted to the State of Texas.
Why is Austin ISD facing a budget deficit?
Each year, Austin ISD鈥檚 expenses increase due to rising costs such as property insurance, energy, fuel, and staff raises to align with the rising cost of living. At the same time, state funding for Texas schools has remained relatively stagnant since 2019. Additionally, federal funding has been reduced due to a decline in the economically disadvantaged student population. Federal reimbursements for School Health and Related Services, which largely fund special education therapies, have also decreased.
During the 88th Texas legislative session in 2023, school districts across Texas alerted the public and legislators of the urgent need for the state to increase school funding given these rising costs and unfunded mandates like the HB3 that requires districts to staff an armed officer at every campus.
Despite the growing need for additional school funding, no new school funding resulted from the regular legislative session, or from any of the four special sessions Texas Governor Greg Abbott called in 2023.
- At the time, Governor Abbott stated he would only approve school funding increases if some form of voucher bill became law.
- A bipartisan coalition of legislators stood against Governor Abbott鈥檚 push for vouchers because they opposed diverting taxpayer dollars to private education.
- As a result, several bills, which contained provisions for teacher compensation and school safety funding, were not passed, leaving school districts statewide with stagnant budgets that have not been adjusted to account for costs due to inflation.
The Texas Legislature meets every two years with the 89th legislative session currently underway.
Why does Austin ISD have budget challenges when school funding comes from local property tax revenue and local property tax bills have been rising each year?
While Austin has experienced significant economic growth, Austin ISD does not get to keep the majority of the property tax revenue that comes with that growth. This is because of a state mandate called recapture, which requires school districts considered 鈥減roperty wealthy鈥 鈥 like Austin 鈥 to send money back to the state to support 鈥減roperty poor鈥 school districts.
How can I provide feedback to the district or ask a question to the district?
There鈥檚 many ways to provide feedback. Join us for a community meeting or share your feedback on 海角社区 Help! 海角社区 Help is a platform that allows community members to submit questions or provide feedback on any topic of interest. It can be accessed through the Austin ISD website by clicking the 海角社区 Help! button located next to the search bar, or by clicking this link austinisd.org/aisdhelp.
How does the Texas Lottery provide funding to Texas school districts, and how does the process work?
The Texas Lottery generates revenue through ticket sales for games like scratch-offs and draw games. A portion of the money collected from these sales is used to pay prizes and cover administrative costs, but a share is allocated to public education in Texas.
This education funding is transferred to the Foundation School Fund, which is the primary source of state funding for Texas school districts. The state then distributes this money to districts based on formulas that consider factors such as student enrollment, property values, and specific student needs.
Importantly, lottery funds do not go directly to individual schools or districts. Instead, they supplement the overall state education budget. This means the funding helps support public education broadly across Texas rather than being earmarked for specific programs or schools.
FY 2025-26 Budget FAQs
What opportunities are there for the community to provide input on the budget?
Austin ISD hosts a series of budget community conversations every year during the spring semester. Community members can get involved by attending those meetings and also by being part of their Campus Advisory Council (CAC), which works with principals to provide input on campus budgets.
What is Austin ISD鈥檚 expected budget shortfall for the 2025-26 school year?
The Austin ISD Board of Trustees adopted the FY2025鈥26 budget with a projected $19 million shortfall and a commitment from the administration to pursue additional expenditure reductions throughout the fiscal year.
What is Austin ISD Doing to reduce the budget deficit?
To address the current FY2025鈥26 budget deficit, Austin ISD has implemented a series of strengthened fiscal controls and expenditure management strategies. These measures include requiring pre-approval for discretionary expenditures to ensure alignment with district priorities and available resources, instituting a hiring freeze for external candidates to limit personnel cost growth, and adjusting procurement card (PCard) spending limits to enhance oversight and reduce nonessential purchases. Collectively, these actions are intended to curb spending, reinforce financial discipline, and mitigate the district鈥檚 projected deficit while maintaining a focus on core instructional and operational needs.
How do property values and recapture factor into the budget?
The adopted budget for the 2025-26 school year includes $1.58 billion in local property tax revenue collected by Austin ISD. Of that amount, the district is projected to send $715.5 million of local property tax revenue to the state to fund other school districts. The Travis County Appraisal District will release preliminary property value estimates on March 25, 2026, for the 2026-27 school year.
How much of the Austin ISD budget is allocated to staff compensation?
After recapture, 87% of Austin ISD鈥檚 General Fund is allocated toward payroll-related costs.
驴C贸mo se financia el presupuesto del Austin ISD?
La mayor parte del financiamiento del distrito proviene de los impuestos locales sobre la propiedad, suplement谩ndose con fuentes estatales y federales.*
La Legislatura de Texas establece las f贸rmulas de financiamiento de las escuelas p煤blicas, con asignaciones que se basan principalmente en dos factores clave:
- Asistencia diaria promedio (ADA, por sus siglas en ingl茅s) y las recaudaciones de impuestos sobre la propiedad del distrito; y
- Financiamiento adicional ponderado para poblaciones espec铆ficas de estudiantes, incluyendo aquellos elegibles para los servicios de Educaci贸n Compensatoria Estatal (como los estudiantes identificados como en riesgo o con desventaja econ贸mica), as铆 como los estudiantes que reciben servicios de educaci贸n especial.
*El Austin ISD est谩 sujeto a un proceso obligatorio estatal conocido como 鈥湴鸪Τ鼙璞鸢钩泵巢遭, que requiere que una parte de los ingresos recaudados localmente por el impuesto a la propiedad se remitan al Estado de Texas.
驴Por qu茅 enfrenta el Austin ISD un d茅ficit presupuestario?
Cada a帽o, los gastos del Austin ISD aumentan a causa de los crecientes costos, como el seguro de la propiedad, la electricidad, el combustible y los aumentos para el personal para alinearse con el aumento del costo de vida. Al mismo tiempo, el financiamiento estatal para las escuelas de Texas se ha mantenido relativamente estancado desde 2019. Adem谩s, el financiamiento federal se ha reducido debido a una disminuci贸n en la poblaci贸n estudiantil con desventaja econ贸mica. Los reembolsos federales para Salud Escolar y Servicios Relacionados, que financian en gran medida las terapias de educaci贸n especial, tambi茅n han disminuido.
Durante la 88.陋 sesi贸n legislativa de Texas en 2023, los distritos escolares de todo Texas alertaron al p煤blico y a los legisladores de la urgente necesidad de que el estado aumente la financiaci贸n de las escuelas dados estos crecientes costos y 贸rdenes no financiadas como el HB3 que requiere que los distritos escolares tengan un oficial armado en cada escuela.
A pesar de la creciente necesidad de financiamiento escolar adicional, no se obtuvo ning煤n aumento en el financiamiento escolar en la sesi贸n legislativa ordinaria ni en ninguna de las cuatro sesiones especiales que convoc贸 el gobernador de Texas Greg Abbott en 2023.
- En ese momento, el gobernador Abbott dijo que solo aprobar铆a los aumentos en el financiamiento escolar si alg煤n tipo de vales se convert铆a en ley.
- Una coalici贸n bipartita de legisladores luch贸 contra la presi贸n del gobernador Abbott por los vales, porque se opon铆an a desviar el dinero de los contribuyentes de impuestos hacia la educaci贸n privada.
- Como resultado, varios proyectos de ley que inclu铆an financiamiento para la compensaci贸n de maestros y la seguridad escolar no se aprobaron, dejando a los distritos de todo el estado con presupuestos estancados que no est谩n ajustados al costo de la inflaci贸n.
La Asamblea Legislativa de Texas se re煤ne cada dos a帽os, y actualmente se est谩 celebrando la 89.陋 sesi贸n legislativa.
驴Por qu茅 el Austin ISD tiene problemas presupuestarios {dificultades presupuestarias] cuando el financiamiento de las escuelas proviene de los ingresos locales de impuestos a la propiedad y las cuentas de impuestos locales a la propiedad han estado aumentando cada a帽o?
Aunque Austin ha tenido un crecimiento econ贸mico significativo, el Austin ISD no conserva la mayor parte de los ingresos por los impuestos sobre la propiedad provenientes de ese crecimiento. Esto es a causa de una orden estatal llamada 谤别肠耻辫别谤补肠颈贸苍, que requiere que los distritos escolares que se consideran 鈥渞icos en propiedades鈥 (como Austin) env铆en dinero al estado para apoyar a los distritos escolares 鈥減obres en propiedades鈥.
驴C贸mo puedo dar mi opini贸n al distrito o hacerle una pregunta?
RHay muchas formas de dar su opini贸n. 脷nase a nosotros en una reuni贸n comunitaria o comparta su opini贸n en 海角社区Help! 海角社区 Help es una plataforma que permite a los miembros de la comunidad enviar preguntas o comentarios sobre cualquier tema de inter茅s. Se puede acceder a trav茅s del sitio web del Austin ISD haciendo clic en el bot贸n 海角社区 Help! ubicado junto a la barra de b煤squeda, o haciendo clic en este enlace austinisd.org/aisdhelp.
Preguntas frecuentes sobre el presupuesto del AF 2024-25
驴Qu茅 oportunidades hay para que la comunidad d茅 su opini贸n sobre el presupuesto?
El Austin ISD tiene una serie de conversaciones comunitarias sobre el presupuesto cada a帽o durante el semestre de primavera. Los miembros de la comunidad pueden participar asistiendo a esas juntas y tambi茅n formando parte de su Consejo Consultivo Escolar (CAC, por sus siglas en ingl茅s), que trabaja con los directores para proveer opiniones sobre los presupuestos escolares.
驴Cu谩l es el d茅ficit presupuestario del Austin ISD esperado para el ciclo escolar 2024-25?
La mesa directiva del Austin ISD adopt贸 un presupuesto con un d茅ficit de $78 millones para el ciclo escolar 2024-25 con el compromiso de la administraci贸n de seguir reduciendo los gastos a lo largo del a帽o fiscal. Desde entonces, a pesar de continuas reducciones en los gastos y la aprobaci贸n de la Propuesta A por parte de los contribuyentes fiscales, el d茅ficit ha aumentado a $110 millones debido a la disminuci贸n del valor de la propiedad y a la creciente inflaci贸n. Adem谩s, el Austin ISD ha incurrido en gastos que no estaban presupuestados inicialmente, como los servicios contratados de educaci贸n especial y el mantenimiento y las reparaciones.
驴Qu茅 est谩 haciendo el Austin ISD para reducir el d茅ficit presupuestario?
El distrito ya ha reducido aproximadamente $60 millones del presupuesto en el ciclo escolar 2024-25. Estas reducciones incluyen la eliminaci贸n de puestos en las oficinas centrales, la reducci贸n de contratos de servicios y la implementaci贸n de eficiencias operacionales en toda la organizaci贸n. A partir del 1.掳 de marzo se implement贸 una congelaci贸n de contrataciones en todo el distrito, excluyendo al personal de educaci贸n especial, como medida para reducir los gastos del a帽o fiscal actual.
Adem谩s, el distrito ha reducido significativamente el gasto asociado con el uso de la tarjeta de compras (P-Card) y ha implantado un proceso que requiere la aprobaci贸n previa de las 贸rdenes de compra, las solicitudes de cheques y los reembolsos tanto a empleados como a personas que no sean empleados antes de cualquier gasto.
驴C贸mo influyen en el presupuesto el valor de la propiedad y la 谤别肠耻辫别谤补肠颈贸苍?
El presupuesto adoptado para el ciclo escolar 2025-2026 incluye $1,580 millones en ingresos por impuestos locales a la propiedad recaudados por el Austin ISD. De esa cantidad, se proyecta que el distrito env铆e $715.5 millones de ingresos por impuestos locales a la propiedad al estado para financiar a otros distritos escolares. El Distrito de Tasaciones del Condado de Travis publicar谩 estimaciones preliminares del valor de la propiedad el 25 de marzo, 2026, para el a. Tenga en cuenta que los valores finales certificados no se publicar谩n hasta julio de 2025.
驴Cu谩nto del presupuesto del Austin ISD se asigna a la compensaci贸n del personal?
Despu茅s de la 谤别肠耻辫别谤补肠颈贸苍, el 87% del fondo general del Austin ISD se asigna a costos relacionados con la n贸mina.
Austin ISD Financial Accolades
Four AAA Bond Ratings
Austin ISD became the first Texas School District to earn four AAA bond ratings. This rating is the highest a school district can achieve. The rating indicates the lowest risk of default and makes sure the district will get the lowest interest rates when taking on debt.
KBRA Rating Letter
KBRA Austin ISD Series 2025 Rating Report
Excellence in Financial Reporting
Awarded the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) 鈥淐ertificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting鈥 for thirteen consecutive years.
Risk Management Fund Excellence
Awarded the "Risk Management Fund Excellence" from the Texas Association of School Boards.
Meritorious Budget Award
Awarded the Association of School Business Officials (ASBO) 鈥淢eritorious Budget Award."
Excellence in Financial Reporting
Awarded the Association of School Business Officials (ASBO) 鈥淐ertificate of Excellence in Financial Reporting鈥 for fourteen consecutive years
Superior Achievement Rating from TEA
For the 21st consecutive year, the district earned a 鈥淪uperior Achievement鈥 rating from the TEA. This is the highest possible rating under the Schools FIRST financial accountability system.
Unmodified/Clean Audit Distinction
For the FY 24-25 .