Dr. John Chapman, superintendent of COMAL ISD, told teachers at the district’s Comal U opening ceremony that recent actions in the state legislature include both large new funding and measures that will create uncertainty for local implementation.

Chapman said the session produced “over 1,500 bills that affect public education” but that “we only had a little over a hundred bills that became law this year.” He warned that a voucher program slated to start in the 2026–27 school year will divert “a billion dollars leaving public education every year” and estimated that, over the next biennium, that proposal could cost public education about $4,200,000,000.

Why it matters: Chapman said the state also approved what he called “the greatest funding mechanism in Texas school history” — about $8,500,000,000 for public education — but stressed that the distribution and sustainability of that money are not yet finalized and could limit local flexibility. "We have to now look at how we're gonna implement this and is it gonna be sustainable," he said.

Chapman outlined specific provisions discussed by the legislature that will affect local pay and budgets. For districts with more than 5,000 students, he said, teachers with three to four years of experience would be eligible for $2,500 next year and teachers with five or more years would be eligible for $5,000; teachers with zero to two years of experience would not receive those amounts under the state formula. He said COMAL ISD currently has 29,732 students.

Chapman cautioned that per-student allocations vary widely by district in the adopted formulas: he said Waller ISD would receive about $2,600 per student, COMAL ISD about $306 per student and Northside about $291 per student. He said those differences mean the state distribution “is apples and oranges” and that the district is still “sifting through” how to apply the funds locally.

Budget pressures: Chapman said the district has run deficit budgets the last two years and is “looking at a $14,400,000 deficit budget” for the coming year depending on final enrollments and revenues. He also said special education remains “millions and millions and millions in the hole” and that some new funding provisions would not take effect until the 2026–27 school year.

Implementation uncertainty: multiple items Chapman described — including a rumored statewide cell-phone ban in schools and changes to student discipline and accountability (he referenced House Bill 4 and discussion of replacing the STAAR test with a nationally normed assessment) — will require guidance from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and legal counsel before the district can finalize local policy. He said the board will not receive the district’s student code of conduct until August, after TEA and legal review.

Chapman repeatedly emphasized the tentative nature of many details: “We don't know exactly what the bill's gonna entail, and how it's gonna be listed within the code of conduct,” he said, urging staff to await legal guidance and TEA guidance before local implementation.

Ending: Chapman said district leaders will provide updates as state guidance arrives and as the board considers local budget and compensation choices. He framed the uncertainty as a call for planning rather than immediate change: "As soon as we know what that looks like and how we're gonna make that implementation work, we'll move forward," he said.