Goose Creek CISD adopts 2025–26 proposed budget and revises compensation plan to align with House Bill 2

The Goose Creek Consolidated Independent School District Board of Trustees on Thursday adopted the district’s legally posted 2025–26 proposed budget and approved a separate revision to the 2025–26 compensation plan to incorporate provisions from Texas House Bill 2. The board voted to approve the proposed budget, as posted, and then approved a follow-up compensation plan amendment intended to reflect HB2’s raises for classroom teachers and related salary-scale changes.

The adoption and compensation revisions were the product of a public hearing and staff presentation by Chief Financial Officer Bridget Clark followed by board discussion. The district posted a 2025–26 budget that did not initially include HB2 funding because certified property values and the Commissioner of Education’s interpretations were not finalized; the board then approved a process to amend the posted budget and the compensation plan so the HB2 provisions can be added in the legally required order.

Clark told the board the public hearing was the final step in the budget process and that preliminary property values were “basically flat,” though values and final tax-rate calculations remain subject to change when counties certify values. Clark said the district’s posted budget showed a $3.6 million general-fund deficit under the previously approved 2% general raise, and that after adding HB2 revenue and HB2-directed raises the district’s working estimate showed a roughly $3.7 million surplus in the amended presentation she had previously shared with trustees. “This is the budget that we… adopted and this is what was legally posted,” Clark said; she explained the board must adopt the posted budget first and then approve two stand‑alone compensation and amendment items to incorporate HB2 in the correct sequence.

Why it matters: House Bill 2, signed earlier in June, provides new, targeted allotments for teacher pay and safety funding. The board’s adoption preserves the legal posting requirement while creating a path to add the HB2-funded increases into the district budget and payroll after certified values and state guidance are finalized.

Key details and staff explanation - House Bill 2 provisions described by CFO Bridget Clark at the public hearing include targeted raises: teachers with three to four years of experience would receive roughly $2,500 and teachers with five or more years would receive roughly $5,000, in addition to other allotments (safety, basic costs, and non‑teacher pay allotments). Clark summarized the district’s plan to retract the previously approved 2% raises for the affected teacher groups and replace them with the HB2 dollar amounts; employees on the teacher pay scale who are not classroom teachers would be moved to a separate scale and receive a recommended 3.5% raise. “The cleanest way and the least confusing way is to retract it and then replace it,” Clark said about handling the timing and implementation. - Clark said the district’s preliminary property values do not yet reflect a new homestead exemption and that compression of the M&O tax rate is possible once counties certify values. She noted Harris County historically certifies later in the cycle, which affects the district’s final tax-rate calculation. - Clark gave the board a line-item snapshot showing the posted budget’s $3.6 million deficit under the previously approved 2% general pay increase and a projected $3.7 million surplus after inserting HB2 revenue and associated expenses into the amended budget.

Board action and votes - Consideration and adoption of the 2025–26 proposed budget (general fund, debt service fund, school nutrition fund): motion to approve by Mr. Martinez; second by Mrs. Guy. Vote: 7 yes, 4 no, 0 abstentions. Outcome: approved. - Consideration and approval of a revised 2025–26 compensation plan to align with HB2 (retract prior 2% raises for the 3–4 and 5+ years teacher cohorts and replace with $2,500 / $5,000; move non‑classroom teacher pay‑scale employees to a separate scale at 3.5%): motion to approve by Mr. Clem; second by Ms. Helen Buratt Tims. Vote: 7 yes, 4 no, 0 abstentions. Outcome: approved. - Consent agenda (13 items, including interlocal agreements, budget amendments, insurance renewals, extended vendor awards and lease-extension items): motion to approve by Mr. Renteria; second by Mr. Clem. Vote: 7 yes, 4 no, 0 abstentions. Outcome: approved.

What trustees and speakers said - Chief Financial Officer Bridget Clark summarized the legal sequence the board must follow to adopt the posted budget and then amend it to include HB2. She told the board, “we have to adopt the 25–26 proposed budget as posted without the provisions of House Bill 2. Then the second action item is… the compensation plan revision… and then the third action item is the 25–26 budget amendment to include the provisions of House Bill 2.” - Superintendent Dr. Bryan O’Brien reminded the board and public that some legislative details remain subject to the Commissioner of Education’s forthcoming guidance and that formal interpretations often follow the session by weeks to months. “Budget amendments could be forthcoming in the future once interpretations do shake out,” he said. - Public speakers and audience members asked for clarification on how teacher‑support roles are classified; district staff said Texas Education Agency definitions in HB2 determine which employees qualify for the HB2 teacher raises, and that the district has recommended moving some employees off the teacher pay scale to a separate scale that would receive a 3.5% increase.

Clarifying details from the presentation - The posted 25–26 budget initially reflected a $3,600,000 deficit under the previously approved 2% general raise. After incorporating HB2 revenue and HB2‑required raises in the district’s amended estimate, the same line appeared as a roughly $3,700,000 surplus in staff’s earlier estimate presented to trustees. - House Bill 2 raises described in the presentation: 0–2 years teachers — a general pay increase (approximately 2% or $1,375 in staff example); 3–4 years — roughly $2,500 (about 3.8%); 5+ years — roughly $5,000 (about 6.4–7.6%). - The district must wait for county certified values (Harris County typically certifies later in the cycle) and Commissioner guidance before final tax-rate adoption; the posted rate used in staff materials was $1.0725 (M&O), subject to compression.

Next steps and timeline - The board adopted the legally posted 2025–26 budget tonight, approved the compensation-plan revisions, and approved that staff may then bring a budget amendment to add HB2 provisions in the legal order required. Board discussion and staff comments indicated the district expects additional clarifications from TEA and the Commissioner later in the summer; September was suggested as a likely window for further official guidance.

Ending note The board’s votes preserved the district’s legal posting obligations while authorizing a clear sequence of compensation and budget amendments to fold in HB2 funds and raises once county values and state interpretation are finalized. Trustees and staff said they will return to the board with required amendments and any additional policy clarifications once those external variables are confirmed.