San Antonio committee hears that state school funding lags as districts face aging buildings and closures

San Antonio — The Educational Opportunities Committee on Feb. 17 heard a wide‑ranging briefing that warned state school funding leaves many local districts underresourced for everyday operations and building maintenance, and detailed how San Antonio ISD has engaged the community while weighing campus closures and property repurposing.

Julia Grizzard of the Bexar County Education Coalition told the committee the Foundation School Program basic allotment for 2026–27 will be about $6,215 per student and that the system first applies local property tax revenue before state aid fills remaining entitlement. "The size of the bucket does not change just because there's more water going into it," Grizzard said, summarizing how local property‑wealth growth can reduce state contributions without raising school budgets.

Why it matters: Committee members and superintendents said the practical result is neighborhood districts face the hardest tradeoffs — funding classroom staff and student services versus preventive maintenance for aging facilities. Grizzard and the superintendents pointed to equity issues in enrichment funding rules (so‑called golden and copper pennies), late rulemaking for accountability data, and steady increases in operating costs that outpace modest increases to the base.

Key takeaways from the briefing:

- State funding and surpluses: Grizzard cited recent state surpluses, noting $33 billion in 2023 and $24 billion in 2025, and said the last session produced an $8.5 billion infusion to education overall but only a modest $55 increase in the base allotment for many districts.

- Special education and facilities gaps: The presentation showed Texas underfunds federally required special‑education services relative to districts’ obligations. Grizzard also said eligibility for the instructional facilities allotment (IFA) has fallen sharply (from about 91% in 1999 to roughly 16% in 2021–22) and that the IFA has not seen new funding since 2017.

- SAISD case study and community engagement: Grizzard described San Antonio ISD’s multi‑month process on closures and repurposing — around 40 meetings and roughly 9,500 survey responses — and said many neighborhood residents asked that former campuses be repurposed for community uses rather than sold. SAISD officials confirmed the district has discussed limited property sales because preventive‑maintenance resources are insufficient to sustain a large portfolio of aging buildings.

- Cost estimates and program constraints: Doctor Jaime Aquino of SAISD told the committee facility‑condition assessments show some buildings are so deteriorated that demolition and rebuilding would be cheaper than renovation; he said rehabilitation costs vary by building and that estimates range "from $30 million to $60 million" per site and that, without preventive maintenance, longer‑term costs could approach "almost $1 billion" in cumulative needs if deferred further. Aquino also noted bonds can fund capital projects but not routine preventive maintenance, which must come from the district general fund.

- Local funding tools and limits: Grizzard and Northside superintendent Doctor Kraft reviewed options such as bond elections and voter‑approved tax ratification elections (often called VADER), the copper/golden penny mechanics and state recapture rules, and the tradeoffs of asking voters for local increases when state yields can be limited for lower‑wealth districts. Kraft said each golden penny could generate roughly $15 million in state yield at maximum.

- Public safety and fee waivers: Craig Hopkins, the city’s chief information officer, said the city’s shared radio system (27 towers built at about $85 million) charges a $22 per‑radio monthly tenant fee to cover maintenance costs and requires radios to meet P25 Phase 2 800 MHz specifications and encryption to interoperate with SAPD. Assistant Chief Robert Blanton (SAPD) described close operational ties between SAPD and independent‑district police units and said SAPD can absorb some patrol duties when districts shift officers to cover mandated campus security.

Council response and follow‑up: Council members pressed for practical city actions to support districts, including exploring fee waivers or targeted subsidies for ISD radio costs, coordinating night patrols to reduce district security spending, aligning sidewalk or infrastructure investments around schools to boost attendance (attendance drives funding in Texas), and creating a school‑centered data dashboard that shows both needs and city investments. Chair Galvan and staff committed to pursue cost details for the radio system and to agendize further discussion (targeting the March–April meeting window) on ISDPD partnerships and other next steps.

Formal action: The committee approved the minutes from the prior meeting at the start of the session (motion recorded as made by Munguia; transcript records the motion passed, without a recorded roll‑call tally).

What’s next: Staff and superintendents said they will return with additional cost data and that the committee may consider city‑level measures (data tools, targeted infrastructure investments and coordinated public‑safety approaches) to help reduce districts’ noninstructional cost pressures while continuing legislative advocacy for a stronger, more equitable state funding base.