The Katy ISD passed its 2016-17 budget at Tuesday night's board of trustees meeting.[/caption]

UPDATED: 2:30 p.m., Aug. 30

The Katy ISD board of trustees unanimously approved the district’s proposed 2016-17 official budget at Tuesday night’s meeting. The State Board of Education mandates that a district’s budget be prepared no later than Aug. 20 and is adopted by the board of trustees no later than Aug. 31 in preparation for the fiscal year, which begins Sept. 1. KISD’s projected total expenditures—which include the district’s general fund, special revenue fund and debt service fund—are up roughly 2 percent from the 2015-16 final amended budget and tally $804,780,693. With three new campuses—Bethke and Jenks elementary schools and Tays Junior High School—added to the district, the budget assumes a student enrollment increase of 2.9 percent, up to 75,744 students. The budget also includes a 1 percent employee salary increase plus a one-time lump sum payment of an additional 1 percent that will be distributed mid-year. Roughly 88 percent of general fund expenditures totaling $631,409,405 are related to payroll costs. “[The raise] goes to everybody,” said Chris Smith, KISD’s chief financial officer. “The board feels like, yeah, the teachers are why we’re here, but everybody’s doing their part in educating children, whether it be driving a bus or cleaning up or being an instructional leader.” KISD has also projected a property tax base increase of 8.6 percent, up to nearly $36 billion and has kept the tax rate at $1.5166—which includes $1.1266 for maintenance and operations and $0.39 for debt services. The debt services rate was lowered one cent in the 2015-16 budget after staying at $0.40 for several years. Smith said the biggest challenges with formulating the 2016-17 budget have been the fixed costs associated with the three new schools and state funding formulas that will, in essence, take money away from the district due to the tax base not increasing by as much as it has in recent years. State programs are expected to contribute $225,366,274 in revenues to KISD, a number that is down from last year’s final amended budgeted amount of $261,786,230. Federal program revenues are projected to remain virtually unchanged at roughly $23 million. Despite these and other obstacles, Smith said he is pleased with how the district has financially prepared for the 2016-17 school year and how the corresponding budget has turned out. “What we think we’ve done is present a good budget,” he said. “It’s a budget that we think will support the vision of being the legacy.”