Austin ISD board of trustees meets June 1 to discuss buying land in South Austin soon rather than later.[/caption]
The Austin ISD board of trustees unanimously approved a $1.2 billion budget for the district’s 2015-16 fiscal year by an 8-0 vote during its Aug. 31 meeting.
Of the $1.2 billion, $1 billion is for general fund expenditures, $109 million is for debt service expenditures and $40.8 million is for food service expenditures.
The board's vote means previous year salary increases will be made permanent. Additionally, within the budget is a 3 percent salary increase for all AISD full-time and part-time employees. Those salary increases will cost the district $14.7 million.
During the public comment period at the start of the meeting, Steve Coyle, a truck driver for the AISD Science and Health Resource Center, thanked trustees for the 3 percent salary increase and said there has been
a feeling among classified employees "that they’re not valued."
"I think there’s a big turnaround in our district,” Coyle said.
Because the state considers AISD a property-wealthy district by the state, AISD will be paying out $272 million of its $1 billion general fund to the state as part of the state’s recapture mandate. So the net general fund budget, after recapture payment is made, is $728.9 million, a decrease of $2 million compared with fiscal year 2014-15.
When discussing how to plan for the fiscal year 2016-17 budget, trustee Edmund Gordon said there are still local issues to be highlighted, including the cost of living in Austin and the amount of money AISD teachers are being paid in relation to teachers in other Central Texas school districts.
“The problem is that school children [are] not a high enough priority for the state for our state legislators or the powers that be,” Gordon said.
AISD’s 2015-16 fiscal year tax rate was effectively $1.202 per $100 of property valuation after the budget was approved.
Updated Sept. 15 at 10:50 a.m. to include passage of tax rate.
Austin ISD board of trustees meets June 1 to discuss buying land in South Austin soon rather than later.[/caption]
The Austin ISD board of trustees unanimously approved a $1.2 billion budget for the district’s 2015-16 fiscal year by an 8-0 vote during its Aug. 31 meeting.
Of the $1.2 billion, $1 billion is for general fund expenditures, $109 million is for debt service expenditures and $40.8 million is for food service expenditures.
The board's vote means previous year salary increases will be made permanent. Additionally, within the budget is a 3 percent salary increase for all AISD full-time and part-time employees. Those salary increases will cost the district $14.7 million.
During the public comment period at the start of the meeting, Steve Coyle, a truck driver for the AISD Science and Health Resource Center, thanked trustees for the 3 percent salary increase and said there has been a feeling among classified employees "that they’re not valued."
"I think there’s a big turnaround in our district,” Coyle said.
Because the state considers AISD a property-wealthy district by the state, AISD will be paying out $272 million of its $1 billion general fund to the state as part of the state’s recapture mandate. So the net general fund budget, after recapture payment is made, is $728.9 million, a decrease of $2 million compared with fiscal year 2014-15.
When discussing how to plan for the fiscal year 2016-17 budget, trustee Edmund Gordon said there are still local issues to be highlighted, including the cost of living in Austin and the amount of money AISD teachers are being paid in relation to teachers in other Central Texas school districts.
“The problem is that school children [are] not a high enough priority for the state for our state legislators or the powers that be,” Gordon said.
AISD’s 2015-16 fiscal year tax rate was effectively $1.202 per $100 of property valuation after the budget was approved.
Updated Sept. 15 at 10:50 a.m. to include passage of tax rate.
