FB Sun Covers First Ever FBISD Budget Deficit!
Fort Bend ISD approves proposed budget

By DIANE TEZENO
Published: 08.27.08

Fort Bend ISD board members made no modifications to the district’s proposed $477.5 budget despite opposition from several residents and a state official to various aspects of the 2008-09 budget.

Board members gave their “OK” to the budget despite a $9.9 million deficit, and also gave the green light to several major expenditure increases, including employee pay raises.

The approved budget includes a 3 percent pay increase on base salary for all district employees, bringing starting salaries for teachers to $44,000.

The newly approved budget also includes $5.1 million for additional staffing, $1.2 million in TASB proposed equity adjustments and $2.26 million in increases for vehicle fuel inflation, among other expenditures.

Prior to the budget’s approval, several speakers voiced opposition to aspects of the budget, including Texas State Rep. Charlie Howard. . .

. . . Board members listened to several other comments from the public on the proposed budget, including

former school board candidate and Fresno resident Rodrigo Carreon.

“Some of our staff here have been working 23 years and never got a raise,” said Carreon.

Carreon questioned why funds from the district were going to the state.

The Fresno resident recommended the district look at alternative fuels such as natural gas versus diesel to save on fuel expenses.

A member of the Fort Bend Employee Federation encouraged the board to improve pay increases for classified employees and teachers above TASB recommendations.

“Equity adjustments and pay increases won’t lift our employees above the poverty level,” said the federation member, echoing a sentiment shared by an earlier speaker.

Richmond resident, Chris Calvin, said he would like to see the board take a closer look at the fund balance.

“Why with all of this money can’t we balance the budget without a tax increase this year,” said Calvin, citing open record information showing the district with a $93.8 million fund balance.

Fort Bend resident Carlos Kane told board members that he did not want to see his property taxes go up.

He expressed strong opposition to board members for proposing the .02 cent tax increase and encouraged board members to remedy the budget deficit through monies in the fund balance rather than by increasing taxes on homeowners.

“I have no objection to teacher’s getting their raises, they should have gotten them a long time ago,” said Kane.

“What I have an objection to is the $100 million dollars that you all had stashed in a trust fund,” said Kane

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FortBendNow: Bhuchar Issues Statement On FBISD Budget, Howard Criticism

In a statement issued late Friday afternoon, Fort Bend ISD Board President Sonal Bhuchar said “the record must be set straight” over the district’s recent decision to raise the district’s debt service tax rate for the upcoming fiscal year.

During a public hearing on the proposed budget and tax rate, State Rep. Charlie Howard (R-Sugar Land) criticized trustees for raising the tax rate when other public entities were either lowering or maintaining existing rates.

Howard’s remarks brought strong rebukes from trustees Steve Smelley and Bob Broxson. Smelley said he was “humiliated” by Howard’s statement, while Broxson suggested Howard did not support public education.

In a later statement to FortBendNow, Howard said he had not intended to insult trustees, but his goal in representing constituents was to see their property tax burden lowered. Howard also said he was addressing the board as a resident and taxpayer, and not in his role as a state representative.

In her statement, Bhuchar cited Howard’s remarks. She defended the board’s decision to raise the debt service tax rate, saying that voters approved the increase as a part of last year’s bond referendum…

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This is the same RECORD bond election that Howard and his edc PAC helped push. He then comes back to the district and complains when they have to increase taxes to begin to pay off this debt…it would seem now that Broxson is denying that these were the issues that have significantly contributed to the current 3rd consecutive budget crisis and he doesn’t even mention the “Global Taj Mahal” and the $30 million being held in reserve for that special project that apparently does not have community support.

I know we can expect another one, but Mr. Broxson needs to at least get his facts straight before he hands these problems off to the next group of board members. Twi of which are hand selected once again by Jenney to run.