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Weslaco ISD finance chief outlines healthy fund balance and board approves $1,000 one‑time stipend
Summary
Deborah Rodriguez told trustees the district’s preliminary fund balance is roughly $66.4 million (about 129 days) and staff recommended a one‑time $1,000 stipend for full‑time employees; trustees approved the stipend (with one abstention) and directed a budget amendment next month.
Deborah Rodriguez, the district finance presenter, told the Weslaco ISD board that unaudited interim financials show the general fund budgeted at about $197 million and receipts so far near $196 million, leaving roughly $1.2 million still pending. She said the district’s estimated ending fund balance after a one‑time bond infusion is approximately $66.4 million, the equivalent of about 129 days of operating costs, and that the preliminary deficit on current figures was about $129,000.
"So our fund balance was 71,000,000 at that time," Rodriguez said while summarizing preliminary audit effects and the district’s current estimates. She noted auditors are on site and that preliminary trial balances should be available by mid‑August or early September and that those numbers could adjust slightly after final audit entries.
Rodriguez asked trustees to consider a proposed one‑time $1,000 stipend to be paid this fall to all full‑time eligible employees. Staff estimated the stipend would cost about $2.5 million — roughly five fund‑balance days if paid out — and said the district would remain above the Texas Education Agency two‑month (60‑day) prudence guideline even after the payment. "For a $2,500,000 payout, we're looking at still having about 100 days of fund balance on hand," Rodriguez said.
Trustees debated timing and mechanics. Some members asked whether the district should wait for fall ADA confirmations or pay after the payroll rollover; others asked whether the $1,000 should be a flat net payment after taxes. Rodriguez and other staff said payroll timing and tax treatments could be calculated and that a budget amendment would be presented at the next meeting to cover the payment.
A motion to approve the $1,000 stipend, amended to consider a flat/net payment option, carried with one abstention from a trustee who said she wanted the final numbers in front of her before voting. The board also directed staff to return with formal budget amendment language and payroll mechanics.
