A $20 million surplus is projected for Klein ISD’s fiscal year 2025-26 budget, Chief Financial Officer Daniel Schaefer said at the April 20 budget workshop.
The overview
Once the FY 2025-26 budget is brought to the board of trustees at the end of the district's fiscal year in June, the $20 million surplus should bring the fund balance total to $255.9 million.
Schaefer said the FY 2025-26 surplus will be put toward next fiscal year’s expected expenses of $20 million to balance out the two year cycle. This would put the district's fund balance at $235.6 million for the next legislative session.
Having a balanced budget has allowed for stability within the district, Schaefer said, allowing time to look into new ways of generating revenue and reducing expenses within the district’s control.
“Having the fund balance available has been pretty helpful to help ride out some of the ups and downs that we’ve seen,” Schaefer said.
The specifics
Schaefer provided multiple updates on potential impacts of the FY 2026-27 budget, such as:
Inflation, increased water expenses, and the gap in attendance rates to before COVID-19 affected the FY 2025-26 budget, Schafer said. These factors are still being taken into consideration for FY 2026-27.
Plans to increase revenue include:
- Increasing student enrollment and retainment
- Improving attendance rates
Schaefer said each percentage increase in student enrollment brings in an additional $3.75 million.
Quote of note
“After so many years of delivering information that wasn’t quite as positive, it’s nice to get one year where we’re coming in, ‘Alright, [Klein ISD] had some positive variances and favorable action from the state,’” Schaefer said.
Looking ahead
Several factors could still affect the FY 2026-27 general budget before it is presented to the district on June 8, including an estimated 2% property value growth. However, the district won’t receive the official preliminary number until April 30.
