Conroe ISD projects balanced 2025–26 budget, proposes pay plan tied to state HB2 funding
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Summary
District finance staff presented a preliminary 2025–26 budget that relies on House Bill 2 allotments for teacher and staff raises, projects $41 million in new state revenue and about $61 million total revenue growth, proposes $33.1 million in pay increases and adds positions primarily for special education.
Conroe ISD presented its preliminary 2025–26 budget and a compensation plan that front‑loads raises for teachers and support staff using new state funding from House Bill 2.
Miss Garza, the district finance lead, told the board the state’s school finance changes bring new allotments — including a teacher retention allotment that generates $2,500 and $5,000 per eligible teacher and a staff support retention allotment calculated at $45 per adjusted ADA — and that the district expects roughly $41 million in new state revenue tied to HB2. Garza said the district projects a nearly $61 million increase in total revenue when other state hold‑harmless and compression adjustments are included, giving the district room to propose raises and staff additions while balancing the budget.
Conroe ISD’s proposal would use $22 million of allotment funds toward a $33.18 million total pay increase package. Amy Campbell of TASB, who helped develop the pay plan, described a recommended mix of raises and structure adjustments: a larger percentage raise for experienced teachers, scaled increases for early‑career teachers, pay‑grade adjustments for paras and a new technology pay structure to remain competitive in the labor market. Campbell said the plan aims to “get people spread within those ranges” and to align teacher‑adjacent positions with teacher raises when possible.
District staff also highlighted rising special education enrollments. Garza told trustees the district ended the year with 11,236 special education students, a 22% increase (2,044 students), and proposed 142 new positions in the preliminary budget — about 95 of them for special education — totaling roughly $8.0 million in personnel additions and $5.6 million directed to special education positions.
Garza explained how recent property tax exemptions enacted in the legislature will change the district’s compressed tax rate calculation and could reduce assessed value: she estimated a $4.4 billion reduction in taxable value in the district from the increased homestead exemptions, which would translate to an $11 million estimated local property tax revenue loss. The state’s hold‑harmless and other HB2 allocations are projected to offset much of that loss for 2025–26, she said, and the district is currently projecting the M&O tax rate to remain at 0.9496.
On budget totals, Garza presented a preliminary revenue estimate of about $761 million and matching projected expenditures, leaving the district with a projected ending fund balance above the board’s 20% target. She said the district estimated a $173 million fund balance (22.7%) at fiscal year end and noted a planned $3.5 million transfer to the district’s self‑funded insurance reserve.
Trustees asked multiple clarifying questions about how HB2 allotments interact with local choices, how the district could prioritize additional local funding for veteran teachers, and the potential implications of education savings accounts and future legislative changes. Trustees also discussed next steps: staff will finalize state funding and certified property values in July and return with a recommended pay plan and budget for board action ahead of the August public hearings and adoption schedule.
No formal budget or pay‑plan resolution was adopted at this meeting; staff recommended the board consider a July approval so raises could be implemented on an effective date of Sept. 1, 2025.
