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Clear Creek ISD projects $19.7 million general-fund deficit for 2026–27
Summary
District staff told trustees that preliminary 2026–27 projections show $404.5 million in revenue and $424.2 million in expenditures, resulting in a projected $19,740,400 general-fund deficit and prompting a strategic budget team to pursue revenue and expenditure actions.
Clear Creek Independent School District staff told trustees on Monday that preliminary projections show a $19,740,400 deficit for the 2026–27 general fund.
Paul Miller, presenting an update on the current 2025–26 year and preliminary figures for 2026–27, said the district began with a $12.5 million projected deficit for 2025–26 but now expects to finish the year with about an $8,151,000 shortfall after enrollment and property-value adjustments. "So we're anticipating about a $8,151,000 deficit when we finished the year out, which is good news, is $4,000,000 less than what we had projected originally," Miller said.
Miller told the board that preliminary revenues for 2026–27 are $404,459,600 while preliminary expenditures are $424,200,000, producing a projected $19,740,400 deficit. He cited a roughly $6 million drop in state aid between 2025 and 2026 and a significant decline in SHARS reimbursements, which he said is currently about $1,000,000. "At some point in the future, if those revenues continue to go down, then it may make more sense to not participate in that program," Miller said of SHARS.
Trustees pressed for more detail on possible revenue options and the trade-offs of expenditure cuts. One trustee asked for itemized dollar estimates tied to prior cost reductions so the board could better evaluate future cuts; Miller and staff agreed to provide more detailed figures in a Friday packet. Trustees discussed possible voter-approval tax-rate options: Miller said retaining an 8 enrichment-penny option would likely yield a net retention of roughly $19–20 million after recapture, but cautioned that some amount would return to the state under recapture rules.
The board also heard a summary of steps already taken to limit the deficit, including the VATRE passed in 2023 that generated roughly $18 million annually, targeted program and enrollment initiatives, competitive procurement savings on insurance and electricity, and staff reductions (70 positions anticipated for 2026–27 and 197 positions reduced over five years). Miller urged careful use of reserves and said the district aims to return to balance by 2027–28.
As next steps, the board will convene a strategic budget team and expects a demographer's report and certified property values in July, followed by public hearings and a potential budget and tax-rate adoption in August.
