Red Oak ISD presents preliminary 2025–26 budget picture amid legislative uncertainty
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Summary
Dr. Johnston presented a preliminary budget update May 12, saying the district is preparing a balanced preliminary budget while waiting on state legislative decisions, comptroller property values and final enrollment figures; he highlighted cost pressures tied to a new middle school and projected tax-rate scenarios.
Dr. Bill Johnston, Red Oak ISD chief financial officer, presented a preliminary budget picture to the Board of Trustees on May 12 and emphasized that several state-level decisions and final property-value numbers remain outstanding before the district can finalize pay and benefit changes or a final tax rate.
Johnston said the district must adopt a budget by June 30 but is preparing a “very basic” preliminary budget because critical inputs — final property values, state legislative outcomes and full-year average daily attendance — remain unsettled. The board’s public hearing and tentative budget actions are scheduled for the June 16 meeting; the district expects to set the tax rate in August after July property-value certifications.
Key figures and assumptions presented by Johnston include a projected maintenance-and-operations tax-rate baseline of 70.79¢ (projected using current assumptions), a projected 6.15% increase in local property assessments used for initial calculations, and a preliminary revenue/expenditure increase of about $3,175,000 that the administration balanced in the draft. Johnston said roughly $1.8 million of that estimated increase is related to opening the new Shaw Middle School (staffing and associated costs), with about $650,000 projected for utilities and property insurance for the new campus.
Johnston also described several legislative items under discussion that could materially affect the district’s budget: potential increases to the basic allotment (he used a cautious $125 increase in his draft), a school safety allotment of roughly $14.37 per student and $37,000 per campus reflected in both House and Senate proposals, and ongoing debate over homestead-exemption increases and tax-rate compression. He warned the board that one revenue item — Medicaid-related reimbursements tied to CHARRS claims — has been reduced from prior years and that the district’s allocation was roughly half of previous levels due to an audit and subsequent adjustments.
Johnston said the district is eligible for fast-growth funding estimated at about $325,000 and that the administration is keeping a conservative estimate for average daily attendance (roughly 94% rather than an optimistic 95%) while awaiting final data. He recommended maintaining a modest and flexible budget posture until legislative action is final and noted the district would return with a budget amendment if state action yields additional revenue.
No board vote was required on the presentation; trustees asked clarifying questions and will consider the required public-notice steps ahead of the June 16 public hearing.
