\t\t\t\tA state reimbursement to Judson ISD has decreased the district\u2019s 2025-26 fiscal year shortfall.<\/p>\n
At the Oct. 16 meeting of the JISD board of trustees, Chief Financial Officer Tony Kingman said that an audit of the state\u2019s 2024 property value study added $1.75 million<\/strong> to district revenue.<\/p>\n With the additional revenue, the JISD FY 2025-26 shortfall now sits at $27.57 million<\/strong>, according to board documents<\/a>.<\/p>\n How it works<\/strong><\/p>\n According to the Office of the Texas Comptroller, a school district property value study<\/a> is conducted once every two years to determine a district\u2019s total taxable value.<\/p>\n This ensures equitable distribution of education funding, according to the comptroller\u2019s office. Districts with less taxable property value per student receive more state dollars for each pupil than districts with more value per student.<\/p>\n According to the Texas Government Code, the comptroller’s office can audit a district’s taxable value upon request and revise the final district findings. A preliminary study<\/a> released by the comptroller in January assigned $14.92 billion<\/strong> of taxable value to the district, while the final study<\/a> lowered the figure to $14.75 billion<\/strong>.<\/p>\n What else?<\/strong><\/p>\n According to board documents, the JISD shortfall has decreased from $37.22 million<\/strong> on July 1 to $27.57 million<\/strong> on Oct. 16.<\/p>\n Kingman said that since the board of trustees began the process of preparing for the FY 2025-26 budget, roughly $10 million<\/strong> in cuts can be attributed to the board. He said that \u201cbig items that drove the reduction\u201d include the elimination of vacant<\/a> district positions and the increase of student-teacher ratios.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve been working all along making sure that we are working on rightsizing, making sure that we are looking at positions, making sure that we are cutting wherever we can,\u201d trustee Suzanne Kenoyer said.<\/p>\n