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Local Government

Austin ISD Will Borrow $140 Million to Make Payroll as Its Deficit Deepens to $86 Million and Two Campuses Trigger a State Takeover Review

Austin ISD plans to borrow $140 million this fall to cover paychecks until property tax money arrives, after its own budget office told trustees the district finished last school year $86 million in the red — $67 million worse than the deficit the board adopted — and with two campuses now failing long enough to put the district in line for state intervention.

The Texas Dispatch · Sep 3, 2026