Victoria ISD held its first budget workshop for the 2025–26 cycle on June 19, where finance staff reviewed how public-school finance and recent legislative changes affect the district’s maintenance and operations budget and long-term fiscal position.

Why it matters: District leaders said recent state changes provide additional revenue streams but do not fully close Victoria ISD’s structural deficit; district managers recommended continued cost-management and rightsizing strategies to balance the budget.

Key points presented:
- Funding mechanics: The maintenance and operations (M&O) budget — which pays payroll and most recurring costs — is funded primarily by local property taxes and state funding tied to student counts, attendance and program weights.
- Legislative changes: The 2025 session raised the basic allotment by $55 per student (district estimate ~ $1.3 million) and created other allotments (school safety increases, $20 per ADA, and an additional $106 per student new allotment in some descriptions) that the district expects will bring new revenue but not enough to erase the deficit.
- Teacher pay and incentives: The legislature created state-directed salary increases for classroom teachers based on years of service (e.g., $2,500 for teachers with 3–4 years and $5,000 for teachers with 5+ years under the new rules). District staff cautioned that the state’s payment is a salary increase but the benefit/retirement (TRS) costs tied to higher pay were not fully funded; the district estimated the additional employer benefit cost could be as much as $750,000 and would reduce available funds unless covered elsewhere.
- Net effect: Using early estimates, staff said the district would still face a deficit for the coming year without additional local adjustments; the presentation showed a baseline structural gap and illustrated how the various legislative allotments and the rightsizing savings interact with that gap.

The finance presenter discussed longer-term tax-compression pressures (the state’s maximum compressed rate reduces local share as property values rise) and compared VISD’s tax rate to peer districts, noting VISD’s rate is lower than a set of comparable districts. Staff also reviewed potential costs of moving board elections from May to November (staff noted November elections can cost the district materially more per cycle).

Ending: Staff said the district will run payroll scenarios that exclude state-funded portions and prepare a balanced budget proposal for the board in July, while continuing rightsizing and staffing alignment work. Trustees asked clarifying questions about timing and the effect of state-coded teacher pay steps on benefits and payroll planning.