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Belton ISD earns "A" first financial rating from TEA; score 98 noted at board hearing
Summary
Belton ISD reported a TEA first financial management rating of 98 and "superior achievement" for the 2024-25 year during the Oct. 20 board meeting. The district's chief financial officer briefed trustees on the rating and the indicators TEA uses to score districts.
Belton Independent School District officials told trustees on Oct. 20 that the Texas Education Agency (TEA) issued the district a first financial management rating of 98, placing the district in the A (superior) range.
Melissa Lafferty, the district's chief financial officer, presented the annual first report based on audited 2023-24 data submitted to TEA. She said the rating reflects performance across 20 financial indicators, including audit timeliness, payroll and tax obligations, fund-balance management, cash-flow sufficiency and debt-service measures.
Lafferty said 85% of the state's 1,018 districts received an A rating for 2024-25 and that roughly 6% of districts have moved from an A to a B rating in the past three years. Trustees asked where the district lost two possible points; Lafferty explained the missed points related to an indicator measuring alignment of debt-service local collections and property values and long-range debt payment capacity.
Trustees and staff discussed statewide trends and the fiscal pressures districts face as funding tightens and some districts take on additional debt for growth and facilities. No board action was required; the presentation was provided as part of the required public hearing on the district's financial management report and first rating.
