The Texas Education Agency (TEA) reviewed their Legislative Appropriations Request (LAR) presentation during a Legislative Budget Board (LBB) hearing this week. Included in the LAR is the base request for the Foundation School Program which is approximately $40.5 billion for the biennium, a net decrease of $169.3 million from the previous biennium. TEA further recommended that the amounts for the basic allotment and guaranteed yield remain unchanged. In response to a request about any significant additions or exclusions in the budget, TEA staff explained that the Commissioner chose to stick with the budget from the last legislative session. Staff also identified as significant that the state’s enrollment growth only is yielding a variance of $168 million, a reflection of property values in Texas. In his testimony later in the hearing, state finance guru Lynn Moak, a founding partner of Moak, Casey & Associates, observed that the tremendous growth in local property values will occur in state funding. During his testimony, Moak also explained that the state is saving approximately $3.8 billion in GR that is not being reinvested back into public education. Additionally, TEA leadership did not recommend a continuation of the $330 million contribution for teacher retirement, which school districts will now have to contribute to TRS. Moak testified that the funding level for public education is still approximately $1.3 billion short from the 2011 level.
