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Temple ISD retains high FIRST rating; finance director reports stable fund balance and cash-on-hand
Summary
Temple ISD trustees approved the district's rating under the Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas (FIRST), with staff reporting a 96 out of 100 score, a $41.6 million unassigned and unrestricted fund balance for FY 2023-24 and 109 days cash on hand for the rated year.
Temple ISD trustees on Sept. 8 approved the district’s rating under the Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas (FIRST) after a staff presentation that highlighted the district’s fiscal stability, strong fund balance and multi-year financial indicators.
Assistant Superintendent of Finance Brandy Stanford told the board the district maintained an “A” rating and scored 96 out of 100 for the rated year. “We ended with a fund balance in the 23–24 of unassigned and unrestricted fund balance of $41,600,000.0,” Stanford said, adding that the district’s cash position for the rating year was 109 days on hand.
Nut graf: The board approved the rating after staff walked trustees through the FIRST indicators, including net position, fund balance, cash-on-hand, liquidity and debt metrics; staff noted that two bond-related indicators reduced points statewide for districts that issued bonds after 2019.
Stanford explained the context for several indicators: the district’s net position increased, indicator 6 (fund balance trend) showed no rapid decline, and indicator 7 (cash-on-hand) remained above the 90-day requirement despite a decline from 123 to 109 days tied to federal funding changes. “This is because this is the year that ESSER funds actually expired,” she said, and noted the district’s continued refinancing to reduce financial risk.
The presenter also described district actions taken to strengthen finances, including targeted asset sales and a tax note to fund stadium improvements. Stanford said those moves helped the district’s position: “We looked at tax a tax maintenance note to fund some projects that could not be funded in a bond, which was the Wildcat Stadium improvements…we also identified properties that we felt like we should sell in order to maximize our operations efficiently to be able to cut long term cost.”
Trustee Gowen moved to approve the district’s FIRST rating; Trustee Myers seconded. The board voted in favor.
Ending: Stanford told trustees an auditor visit was scheduled and the most recent year is still under audit; she said staff will monitor cash and debt schedules and bring bond/refinancing proposals to the board when market conditions warrant.
