AUSTIN, Texas – Emergency management teams at the state operations center in north Austin were busy tracking the winter weather that was moving into Texas. 

Governor Greg Abbott was briefed on the storm prep followed by this assessment.

“It looks like we’re ready to go,” said Gov. Abbott.

Images of all the snow that has fallen across the mid-west are not being ignored. Isolated power outages in Texas are possible, but the grid is expected to hold, according to Pablo Vegas, the head ERCOT.

“As a point of reference, we have added more than 10,000MW of new generation just this year since last winter. And so we’ve got more supply on the grid than we ever have had before. And we’ve been coordinating very closely with all the power generators and the transmission distribution utility companies over the last week in preparation for this upcoming weather event,” said Vegas.

Statewide, more than 300 warming centers were open as of Wednesday, Jan. 8, according to Governor Abbott.

“Resources are staged across areas of concern. Responders are stocked with water, ready to eat meals and blankets and are prepared to transport stranded motorists to nearby warming stations,” said Abbott. 

For the past several days, more than 2,000 TxDOT crews have been pre-treating major roadways. The agency is now in the process of transitioning into road clearing.

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“We do have more plows. We have more equipment. We have them staged across the state more strategically. And they’re all staged and ready to go for this event,” said Brian Barth, TxDOT deputy executive director.

Road crews from South Texas, according to Barth, have also been moved to north Texas to provide extra manpower.

“We have all of our resources focused from the I-10/20 split, running up I-20 all the way up through Texarkana, because that’s where the current forecast shows our biggest threat,” said TDEM Chief Nim Kidd. 

The wintry mix will hit as college football fans head to Dallas for Friday’s playoff game between the Longhorns and Ohio State. Roads around the AT&T stadium are expected to be open, although the governor said drivers need to be aware of possible slick spots.

“There should be no hindrance to people being able to attend the game. Obviously, with potential snow or icing conditions in the DFW area, on I-35, on I-20, on all the different interstates or roadways that lead to the Dallas-Fort Worth area is incredibly important that everybody drives extra safe. If you’re very cautious and slow and methodical in your driving, everything’s going to be just fine,” said Gov. Abbott.

Central and south Texas may not get iced in, but Governor Abbott indicated residents in those parts of Texas should also be weather-wise. 

There is a concern that the rain in those regions could cause isolated flooding.  A warning was also issued about misusing heaters and power generators. Cases of carbon monoxide poisoning and fires can increase during winter events.

AUSTIN, Texas – The new legislative session starts in one week. Among the major issues facing lawmakers will be education, after the legislature failed to pass a school funding measure during the last session. Against that backdrop, districts across Central Texas are finding themselves in the red, including Austin ISD. 

“In my time on the board, we have not had this much of a deficit,” said Austin ISD board president Arati Singh. 

Singh is concerned about the current $92 million budget deficit, about 10% of the overall budget. 

“It is tough. It’s not easy,” said SIngh. 

“I am definitely concerned as a school leader,” said Melissa Rodriguez, principal of Lively Middle School. 

In fact, about two-thirds of districts in Central Texas are operating in a deficit right now, and many ISD leaders point to stagnant public school funding from the state. 

“There is something historic happening here that our state is choosing not to fund public education,” said Singh. 

In 2023, Gov. Greg Abbott’s school choice voucher plan fell short, and public school funding measures that were tied to it stalled as well, like teacher pay raises, enhanced career training for students, and raising what’s known as the “basic allotment”, the per-student amount that districts get from the state. The basic allotment has been stuck at $6,160 since 2019, despite big-time inflation since then. 

“We rank near the bottom nationally in this per student funding,” said Singh. “It’s not actually based on the cost of actually educating a child.”

Singh also points to increased costs related to House Bill 3, the school safety law passed in 2023. 

On top of that, Austin ISD pays out hundreds of millions of dollars in school property tax money to the state every year in what’s known as “recapture,” a way to even out the wealth among Texas districts. Last year, AISD’s payment was $699 million, the highest in the state. That amount is based on local property values. 

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“Yeah, it is [unfair], because property values really don’t have a whole heck of a lot to do with the needs of students in a city,” said Singh. “Over half of our students are economically disadvantaged.”

So, with the $92 million shortfall in mind, a committee was formed, which spent the fall figuring out how to make it up over three years. That plan was presented to the board in December. 

“It is difficult,” said Superintendent Matias Segura at the December 12 meeting. “Everything has an impact.”

In this current school year, the proposed cuts include things like eliminating some vacant positions, changes to technology, reorganizing departments, and reducing the number of special education vendors. 

In the 2025-26 school year, the district plans to have some central office employees work from home, so it can lease space in that building, as well as changing bus routes, optimizing master schedules, and reducing portable classrooms, among other things. 

The catch? 

“We don’t know yet how much of a cost reduction each of these will yield,” said Segura. 

If the budget is not reduced by enough next year, that’s when district officials say the cuts will really start being felt at the school level. 

“I am concerned that we would maybe have to consider increasing class sizes,” said Singh. “Cutting planning periods for our staff.” 

“We have to do more with less,” said Lively Middle School Principal Melissa Rodriguez. 

Rodriguez says any cuts to the arts would be very tough. 

“Our students absolutely love participating in music, art, theater, guitar, orchestra. They are motivated by that,” said Rodriguez. “So if we take that from them, we’re really taking a big part of what they love.

Some parents and teachers are urging caution. 

“I’m confused about why you would rush to vote on a budget when we don’t yet know what will come out of the legislative session,” said Tracy Dunlap, a teacher at Maplewood Elementary School, at the November 21 AISD board meeting. 

But, as all this happens, some are opening up their pocketbooks to help. 

“People who reach out to us and say ‘I’m seeing what’s happening to public schools and I care and I want to do something to support it,’” said Michelle Wallis, executive director of the Austin Education Fund. 

“The work that we’re doing through the Austin Ed Fund feels even more critical now,” said Wallis. “We funded 66 projects across Austin to the tune of about $450,000 this year.”

Still, the district will need much more to get out of the current hole. Recent comments from Gov. Greg Abbott about the upcoming session has some people feeling optimistic. 

“We will fully fund public schools in the state of Texas. We will provide teacher pay raises,” Abbott said in November. 

Austin ISD listed recapture reform among its legislative priorities. But for Singh, boosting the basic allotment will be the real game-changer. 

“We really need the state to step up,” said Singh. 

Austin’s budget deficit would be even higher if not for $30 million in cuts that were made at the central office over the summer, including 12 layoffs, as well as $20 million from the passage of Proposition A by voters in November. 

The upcoming round of cuts is expected to be finalized by the school board in the coming weeks.