Harlingen CISD board adopts balanced 2025–26 budget, approves districtwide pay increases; tax rate set preliminarily

Harlingen CISD trustees on Wednesday approved a balanced budget for fiscal 2025–26 and a compensation plan that raises pay across job categories, while staff presented a preliminary property tax rate that will be finalized in September.

The district’s budget presentation, given by Ira Ambrise of the business office, proposed a combined legal budget of $222.9 million for the three funds that must be adopted — the general fund, food service and debt service — and an all-funds total of $260.5 million. Ambrise said the administration also is proposing a preliminary tax rate of 0.9061 per $100 of assessed value based on estimated certified values; the final rate will be set when the appraisal district releases final valuations.

The budget matters because it funds payroll, operations and planned maintenance across the district. Ambrise said the board is being asked to approve the official budget now and that the final tax-rate decision will come in September when valuations are final.

Trustees emphasized the personnel impacts during discussion. The board separately approved a compensation plan that raises pay for teachers and all staff groups. Trustees and the superintendent highlighted that some of the new revenue items coming from the state — including the teacher retention allotment and a new “ABC” (basic cost) allotment created under House Bill 2 — made additional compensation possible.

Key figures and decisions: the board approved a general fund budget of $193.3 million, a food-service fund budget of $20.3 million and a debt-service budget of $9.2 million, for an official total of $222.9 million for the funds requiring legal adoption. The administration presented a student ADA used for planning of 14,006.84 and an enrollment figure of 16,037. Ambrise said the district estimates a certified tax roll of about $5.7 billion (preliminary) and is using a 93% collection rate as an assumption. The proposed tax rate of 0.9061 represents a 0.01 decrease from last year’s rate in the administration’s calculation.

The compensation plan passed before the budget vote. Among the changes presented: step increases and one-time retention items from the state were combined with local raises, including increases to starting teacher pay to $55,000, targeted retention payments for teachers with 3–4 years ($2,500) and 5+ years ($5,000), increases to substitute pay (to $85/day for non-degreed substitutes and higher for degreed and certified substitutes), a 4% midpoint increase for hourly clerical and auxiliary staff (about 1,000 employees), and a 2.5% midpoint adjustment for administrators and other professionals. The board voted to approve the compensation plan and then approved the budget and a final budget amendment aimed at aligning function-level totals for year-end.

The presentation also described revenue changes: a roughly $16 million increase in state revenue driven primarily by new allotments (including teacher retention and ABC allotments) and a projected decrease in federal revenues tied mainly to SHARS/Medicaid changes that impact all Texas districts. Ambrise noted local property tax projections were lower than last year’s budgeted levy in part because last year’s levy had been overbudgeted and because the state makes up any shortfall through the state funding formula.

Trustees stressed the budget is a “living document” that will be adjusted to actual enrollment and revenues. Board members thanked the business office and district leadership for months of work and multiple committee meetings that produced the plan.

The board approved the compensation plan and the 2025–26 budget unanimously; the preliminary tax rate is informational and will be finalized in September when appraisal values are certified.