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AUSTIN (KXAN) — As school districts across Central Texas make budget decisions for the 2025-26 school year, KXAN is keeping track of starting teacher salaries area-wide.
There are 58 districts in the KXAN viewing area, from Mason ISD in the west to Fayetteville ISD in the east. So far, 39 of those districts have announced salaries for the upcoming school year.
The map below shows starting salaries in each district for new teachers with no experience. Additional districts will be colored in as salary information is decided by school boards. Click the arrow in the top right to see salaries for the 2024-25 school year.
Which districts offer the highest and lowest starting salaries?
Many districts told KXAN they are waiting for further guidance from the Texas Education Agency on the impact of House Bill 2 before setting new salaries. When asked in mid-June, a spokesperson for the TEA told KXAN they were still in the process of evaluating and did not have information to pass along at that time. Several districts said they anticipate confirming new salaries in July or August.
Of the districts that have released new pay scales for the 2025-26 school year, Del Valle ISD is offering the highest starting salary at $60,000, a $400 increase over last year. This is the third school year in a row that Del Valle ISD has offered the highest starting salary areawide.
Bastrop ISD has the second-highest starting salary announced so far — $57,750, a 3.1% increase over last school year. Manor ISD, Hutto ISD, Leander ISD, Round Rock ISD, Burnet CISD, Eanes ISD, Georgetown ISD, Liberty Hill ISD and Elgin ISD all offer a starting salary of at least $56,000.
Jarrell ISD, Lockhart ISD, Florence ISD, Fredericksburg ISD, Blanco ISD, Taylor ISD, Hays CISD, Lampasas ISD, Johnson City ISD, Marble Falls ISD, Lago Vista ISD, Llano ISD, Rockdale ISD, Doss CCSD, Lexington ISD, Luling ISD and Smithville ISD all offer at least $50,000 for new teachers with no experience.
Of the districts that have set budgets so far, 11 will offer less than $50,000. Richland Springs ISD offers the lowest starting salary — $36,960. The district has historically used the state minimum teacher salary, set by lawmakers, which this year was increased by $300 to $33,960. The district chose to add an additional $3,000 to that this year.
Which districts increased pay the most this year?
Of the districts that have announced salaries for the 2025-26 school year, 26 have increased pay for new teachers with no experience compared to last year.
Dime Box ISD increased the most, with a 13.5% increase in starting salary. A new teacher there will earn $48,000, up from $42,287 the previous school year. Richland Springs ISD increased starting salaries by 9.8%, while Llano ISD increased by 8.5%
When looking at dollar amounts, Dime Box ISD increased the most, with a $5,713 increase in starting salaries. Llano ISD increased by $4,000, while Burnet CISD increased by $3,700.
Thirteen districts did not increase starting salaries for the new school year: Eanes ISD, Elgin ISD, Georgetown ISD, Harper ISD, Hays CISD, Johnson City ISD, Leander ISD, Lometa ISD, Luling ISD, Mason ISD, Prairie Lea ISD, Rockdale ISD and Round Top-Carmine ISD.
How will House Bill 2 impact salaries?
This year, state lawmakers approved a school funding package that was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott in early June. The $8.5 billion bill, known as House Bill 2, creates new buckets of money for public schools to spend on specific initiatives.
About half of those funds — $4.2 billion — is for teacher pay raises, in some cases as much as $8,000. The exact amount of the 'Teacher Retention Allotment' is determined by how many students are enrolled in a district and by how many years of experience teachers have.
The allotment doesn't kick in until a teacher has at least three years of experience, meaning starting salaries for brand-new teachers will not change from last year unless individual districts choose to do so.
