Breaking it down
Chief Financial Officer Brian Moy said projections for the 2025-26 school year show an enrollment of 14,839 students, which is an anticipated decrease from the current enrollment of around 14,949.
Moy said the change in enrollment is mainly due to the number of seniors leaving the school district being higher than the number of kindergarten students entering the school district.
“We are not replacing the exiting seniors one for one,” he said.
While school districts are not funded by enrollment figures, they do staff based on projected enrollment and the needs of students.
At the time the FY 2024-25 budget was approved, the project shortfall for the district was around $11.43 million.
As of the Feb. 6 workshop, Moy said the anticipated shortfall will be around $3.85 million, leaving the district around $7.58 million higher than originally anticipated.
At this shortfall, the district would have an ending fund balance around $52.97 million, totaling around 4.2 months of operating funds. The current tax rate for the district is $1.1369 per $100 valuation.
Moving into the next fiscal year, district staff is considering a VATRE as an option for increasing district revenue. This rate increase would need to be approved by voters in November, if that is the option the district chooses.
The possibility of an increase to the tax rate depends on what funding districts receive from the 89th Texas State Legislature, which began on Jan. 14.
“It all depends on the legislature,” Moy said.
Moving forward
According to information from the Texas Secretary of State, an election would have to be called by Aug. 18, and the election would be scheduled for Nov. 4 if the district decides to go that route.
Alongside discussions of a VATRE, the board discussed the possibility of a bond election in November 2026 to help cover the costs of maintenance projects for district departments. These projects were presented by each department at each meeting from September to January.
SCUCISD is not the only district considering a tax rate election, with Judson ISD having similar discussions during a board workshop.
No decisions were made regarding the calling of an election during the meeting, and future budget conversations will be held during future meetings.
