Austin ISD's Prop A ballot measure would increase property tax, give raises to teachers

Voters to decide on Austin ISD Prop A

In Austin, voters will decide on a property tax increase to help fund the school district - Austin ISD Proposition A.

AUSTIN, Texas - Election Day is two weeks away, and one of the things you might see on the ballot is Austin ISD's Proposition A. Voters will decide on a property tax increase to help fund the school district.

For the average homeowner in Austin, passing Prop A would mean an increase of about $412 a year.

This would generate about $171 million, but the district would only keep a fraction of that due to state recapture. That's where property-rich districts pay a portion back to the state to be redistributed to poorer districts.

AISD would keep $41 million, and the district plans to spend $17.8 million of that on a compensation plan.

Voters to decide on property tax increase

The Austin ISD Board of Trustees voted to put a potential property tax rate increase on the November ballot. The increase would help with the district's budget deficit.

"Professional educators are really experiencing an affordability crisis here in Austin and in Central Texas. For us to ensure that we have the absolute best educators in front of our students, we have to be competitive in pay," AISD superintendent Matias Segura said.

The plan has market adjustments for teachers and staff, with the highest increases going to the most experienced teachers.

85% of staff would get a pay increase if Prop A passes. The ones who wouldn't get raises would be executive staff.

"We are seeing attrition with years of experience. It does tend to happen in large urban areas where people start their families and move to the suburbs. It is happening exponentially because of the cost of living in Austin," Brandi Hosak, chief of talent strategy for AISD, said.

Here's a breakdown of average pay raises:

Teachers at the beginning of their careers would get about a 1.4% increase and up to a 7.3% increase for the most experienced teachers.

"This package is going to put us on the market with our surrounding districts so that we remain, if not on the market, even leading market," Hosak said.

AISD says they're facing a $92 million budget deficit, attributing that to inflation and lack of funding from the state.

If Prop A doesn't pass, regular employees would get a one-time stipend of $500.

Amidst this, the district continues to make cuts.

"Right now, we're in the process of identifying additional cuts to the tune of about $90 million. We're going to take those cuts over the course of three years," Segura said.

In August, when the Board of Trustees voted to put Prop A on the ballot, Trustee Kevin Foster was the only "no" vote. He argued they need to protest against the state not funding public education.