On Aug. 17, New Caney ISD’s board of trustees approved a balanced fiscal year 2026-27 budget, and a tax rate that could bring homeowners a smaller tax bill despite increased home values, district budget documents show.
At a glance
NCISD trustees unanimously approved the FY 2026-27 budget, with trustee Creg Mixon absent during the vote, on Aug. 17.
NCISD’s approved FY 2026-27 general fund budget features about $243.87 million in both total revenue and total expenditures, according to FY 2026-27 budget documents. The largest expenditures in the budget include:
- $141.53 million for instruction, which includes employee wages
- $22.12 million for facility maintenance and operations
- $13.65 million for school leadership
Compared to the general fund for the original FY 2025-26 budget, when it was adopted by trustees in August 2025, the FY 2026-27 budget’s general fund includes about:
- $9.37 million, or about 4%, more in total revenues and expenditures
- $6.7 million, or about 5%, more for instruction
- $2.03 million, or about 25.6% more for curriculum and educator development
Also of note
On Aug. 17, NCISD’s board of managers also approved a FY 2026-27 total tax rate of $1.2393 per $100 valuation, with Mixon absent, according to meeting documents. The tax rate is $0.0159 lower than the current total tax rate, which is $1.2552 per $100 valuation.
However, the total taxable property value within NCISD's boundaries for FY 2026-27 increased by 5% year over year from $7.94 billion to $8.34 billion, according to meeting documents.
What it means
Even though the median value of homes within NCISD increased year over year, the median taxpayer is expected to pay less taxes to NCISD for FY 2026-27 compared to FY 2025-26, according to NCISD meeting documents.
The median value of a home within NCISD’s boundaries for FY 2026-27 is $131,434, according to meeting documents. That means a taxpayer with this home value is expected to pay $1,628.86 in annual taxes to NCISD.
In FY 2025-26, the median home value was $130,000, so a taxpayer with that home value paid $1,631.76 annually, according to meeting documents.
Even when a school district’s tax rate decreases year over year, homeowners may still see an increase on their tax bill if their home value increased year over year, if they lose a homestead exemption, or if their property value has exceeded the 10% appraisal cap, as previously reported by Community Impact.
