Georgetown ISD projects balanced budget, prepares to receive additional school funding

The district’s largest expense will be payroll at $132.72 million followed by an $18.68 million recapture payment and $9.9 million in expenses for contracted services, Hanna said.

This spring, GISD officials proposed making about $3.73 million in budget reductions amid a projected $3.72 million budget shortfall. A total of 32% of the reductions would be district-wide, with 3% concentrated in athletics and 6% in special education programming, according to previous Community Impact reporting.

“We’ve worked very, very hard to balance the budget,” Hanna said. “I think [with] the efficiencies that we have seen and the cuts we’ve made, we have really been very thoughtful and intentional.”

GISD is expecting to adopt a tax rate of $1.0124 per $100 valuation, which is around $0.04 lower than the FY 2024-25 tax rate due to compression from the state, Hanna said.

The update

GISD could realize a budget surplus of $7.48 million after applying state funding changes made during the 2025 legislative session, which adjourned June 2, Hanna said.

HB 2—a $8.5 billion school funding proposal signed by Gov. Greg Abbott June 4—includes a:

• $55 increase to the basic allotment of funding per student
• $2,500 raise for teachers with three to four years experience and $5,000 raise for teachers with five or more years of experience
• $45 support staff retention allotment per average daily attendance
• $106 basic costs allotment per enrollment

Going forward

GISD is considering options to provide raises for first- and second-year teachers as well as other staff members, said Amanda Johnson, executive director for human resources.

The district is awaiting guidance from the state on which staff members are eligible to receive teacher raises under HB 2, Johnson said. GISD will discuss the employee compensation package and amend its budget Aug. 4 before the board takes a vote Aug. 18, she said.

“We're in a better position than some of our neighbors to consider compensation for our hourly employees and anyone who's not a third-, fourth- or fifth-plus-year teacher, which is all that's covered in House Bill 2,” Superintendent Devin Padavil said.