Local funding will increase for Fort Bend ISD’s budget next year while new programs and employees come on line. The board of trustees approved a $592.6 million operating budget for the 2016-17 school year from district staff June 6.

Trustees voted on the budget at the June 20 meeting and will vote on the tax rate in September. The budget reflects a 2.1 percent increase from the $580.4 million budget for the previous school year.

Enrollment growth of 1,033 additional students, increased staffing needs and new projects, such as the opening of Sullivan Elementary School in August, are driving the budget increase, FBISD Chief Financial Officer Steven Bassett said.

“From an expenditure [perspective], we have $1.83 million for new positions,” he said. “That’s including some additional 11 positions for [career and technical education].”

The approved budget also includes an additional $2.5 million for existing teacher salaries. The budget was approved on the assumption the district would adopt an overall tax rate of $1.32 per $100 valuation. It was initially recommended that FBISD lower its debt service tax rate from $0.30 to $0.28, but Bassett said the district could maintain the same rate.

“The picture will look different if we have a favorable legislative session in 2017,” Bassett said. “But we planned as if we’re not getting any new money.”

The budget was crafted with the expectation that 74,111 students will be enrolled by 2017, and per pupil spending for the 2016-17 school year increased to $7,996 compared with $7,909 for the 2015-16 school year.

Local funding increased to $364.2 million in the budget, versus $333.2 million for the previous year. Local funding makes up a larger share of revenue in the 2016-17 budget than in the previous year—about 62 percent compared with about 58 percent in 2015-16—according to FBISD documents.

“I guess that would appeal to all the politicians who espouse that they are actually interested in local control,” FBISD trustee Jim Rice said.

He said dropping state revenue has led the district to make cuts, such as disbanding the Reading Recovery literacy program for elementary students this fall, to balance the budget.

“That’s what every school district is trying to do—maintain funding so we have sustainable programs that we can put in place year, after year, after year to meet the needs of our students,” he said.

The budget is adopted using preliminary numbers and actual year-end revenue may be different than what is adopted, according to Amanda Bubela, FBISD director of external communications and media relations.