Harlingen CISD reviews three compensation options as House Bill 2 brings new funds

At a special meeting, Harlingen CISD trustees heard a budget workshop in which district staff outlined a proposed FY2026 compensation plan built around state funding from House Bill 2 and three options for local increases to administrative, clerical and auxiliary pay.

The compensation presentation said House Bill 2 will add targeted allotments — including teacher retention funding, a basic cost allotment (ABC), a support‑staff allotment and a school safety allotment — that together the district projects will bring roughly $8.4 million into next year’s budget. District staff told trustees they expect $5.7 million of that amount as state funding for the current biennium and that the district will need to cover additional local costs for some increases.

District presenter Ms. Ambliss said the state’s teacher funding comes as two distinct stipends and explained how the biennium payout works. “We are only guaranteed, that $5,700,000 that I mentioned, for the biennium,” Ms. Ambliss said, referring to state support allocated to Harlingen CISD. She added the district must plan for the pay increases to become permanent payroll costs after the biennium.

Why it matters: House Bill 2’s new allotments change the district’s revenue mix and require the trustees to balance teacher pay increases that are state‑funded for the biennium with locally funded pay moves for other employees and fringe benefits that will be ongoing obligations.

Most important facts

- House Bill 2 items described by staff include an increase to the basic allotment (an example figure cited: a $55 increase to a $6,215 base), a new basic cost allotment (ABC) of $106 per enrolled student, an additional $45 per student for support staff funding, and a school safety allotment described as $33,530 per campus plus $20 per average daily attendance (ADA). (All figures presented by district staff.)

- District projections presented: support staff retention allotment ~ $560,000; school safety allotment ~ $1,300,000; ABC allotment ~ $1,700,000; teacher retention allotment ~ $4,800,000; grand total ~ $8,400,000.

- State‑funded teacher pay increases presented: $2,500 for teachers who are in the 3+ years experience group and $5,000 for those in the 5+ years group. The district counted about 98 teachers in the 3–4 year group and about 997 teachers in the 5+ group; about 71 teachers fall outside the state‑funded groups and would receive locally funded increases.

- The district proposed increasing starting teacher pay from $54,000 to $55,000; year‑1 teachers would receive a $1,200 increase and year‑2 teachers $1,400 under the local proposals. District staff said fringe costs (TRS, Medicare, workers’ compensation) for the pay increases would be locally funded.

- Staff presented three districtwide options for non‑teacher employees (administrative, clerical, auxiliary): • Option 1: total cost ~$6.9 million (district share ~$1.2 million; state share ~$5.7 million). • Option 2: total cost ~$7.1 million (district share ~$1.4 million). • Option 3: total cost ~$7.5 million (district share ~$1.7 million).

- Additional proposals included substitute pay increases (non‑degreed to $85/day; degreed to $125/day; certified to $145/day), a proposed new perfect‑attendance stipend for food‑service staff ($400/semester funded by the food‑service operations budget), and a $200 increase to elementary bilingual stipends (examples given: ~$350/semester for small classes; ~$600/semester for 10+ students). District staff said the bilingual stipend change would include dual‑language teachers and would cost about $65,000.

Board discussion and concerns

Board members welcomed higher pay for substitutes, food‑service staff and starting teachers and debated the three options’ distribution. Board President Dr. Perez said the choice would come down to which option best balances district affordability and meaningful increases for lower‑paid clerical and auxiliary staff. “I think it would make a bigger difference if we can sort of give a little bit of bump for the clerical [and] auxiliary,” Dr. Perez said.

Board member Dr. Muniz pressed staff on sustainability if state funding does not continue after the biennium. Ms. Ambliss answered, “It could potentially, which is why we have a conservative approach here on these percentages,” and reiterated that the district must forecast and constrain local spending to remain sustainable.

District actions and next steps

Staff told trustees they will deliver an updated copy of the presentation on Thursday and that the full proposed budget and compensation plan are scheduled for board consideration later this week. “On Wednesday…we're looking to bring forward the entire budget along with a compensation plan for consideration of approval,” Ms. Ambliss said; trustees were advised to continue one‑on‑one follow‑up conversations with district leadership before the vote.

Background and operational notes

During the presentation, district staff said they have pursued a rightsizing strategy and have realized approximately $3,000,000 in savings to date by reducing roughly 100 positions through attrition, about 22 of which were central‑office roles. Staff said they will continue monitoring enrollment and may pause hiring some support positions until fall enrollment is confirmed.

What remains unresolved

Trustees did not vote on a compensation option at the workshop. They asked for additional detail on the full budget, fringe cost calculations (which staff said the state stipends are salary only and the district will pay associated fringe costs), and the operational mechanics of staff priorities such as pre‑K placement for employees’ children.

Ending

Trustees scheduled follow up review and expected a formal consideration and vote on the compensation plan and the FY2026 budget during the board’s next meeting cycle after receiving updated materials from staff.