The Austin Community College District (ACC) Board of Trustees met for a work session and its regular meeting on Monday, June 2. Highlights include a study of the fiscal year 2026 (FY26) budget, updates on the 89th Texas Legislative Session, a facilities maintenance plan presentation, and an hourly employee data discussion.
Below are highlights from the Board’s work session and meeting.
FY26 Budget Study
ACC Executive Vice Chancellor for Finance & Administration Neil Vickers walked trustees through the FY26 budget, expected to be $568 million.
On the revenue side, enrollments continue to be strong—up 12% this summer compared to last year, with a projected 5% growth for fall. Vickers says they will continue to monitor enrollments. Tuition and fees make up about 15% of the College’s expected revenue. Trustees voted to keep tuition and fees unchanged for the 12th consecutive year in April.
With the 89th Texas Legislative Session ending on the same day as the board meeting, the College does not yet know how much it will receive in state appropriations—which account for about 14% of the expected revenues—but anticipates it will be lower than expected.
Additionally, House Bill 9 may decrease how much the College receives in property taxes, which make up about 68% of the expected revenues. The bill, which creates a new tax exemption for businesses, must be approved in a constitutional amendment election in November, and if passed, will go into effect for ACC’s FY27 budget year.
On the expense side, the College expects an increase next year due to increased faculty costs correlated with the rise in enrollment.
The College is unable to provide a recommendation on employee compensation until the market analysis being conducted by consultant Guidehouse is complete. Meanwhile, there is a placeholder of a 3% raise for employees based on the Consumer Price Index. The College cautioned that there is less than $1 million in cushion in the FY27 budget that may not account for everything, so they will have to be conscious of any recurring costs such as salaries. Salaries and benefits make up the largest portion, 67%, of the budgeted expenses.
A formal compensation proposal will be presented at the July board meeting, and trustees will have until August to approve it.
Recap on the 89th Texas Legislative Session
The Texas Legislature’s 89th regular session ended June 2. Dr. Chris Cervini, Vice Chancellor of Community & Government Affairs, provided trustees with an update on the status of legislation that may impact the College.
Two priority bills ACC provided expert testimony on passed this session.
Senate Bill (SB) 1191, focused on dual credit GPA parity with other advanced placement courses, passed after initially failing. It was dramatically revived through a rare successful “motion to reconsider,” which is a legislative maneuver that allows for a bill to be revived and have another vote take place. On its second opportunity, the bill passed with only 6 “no” votes – an astonishing turnaround given that it initially failed with 80 “no” votes. ACC’s Government Affairs team gives us the play-by-play of all the work that went into the bill’s miraculous revival.
House Bill (HB) 2768 allows state agencies to partner with community colleges on IT apprenticeship credentials to address state workforce shortages.
Another priority bill, SB 1786, which sought to update last session’s community college finance reform, passed earlier in the session. The legislation expands Financial Aid for Swift Transfer (FAST) eligibility, tightens the definition of “credentials of value,” and adds students transferring to private institutions to Performance Tier funding calculations.
SB 37 includes a wide range of new requirements related to curriculum review, the makeup and duties of faculty senates, and governing-board roles. Cervini said that the College is still reviewing the legislation to determine what administrative changes might be needed for compliance with this far-reaching measure.
Cervini highlighted many other bills that will or may impact the College.
Legislation that failed to pass included efforts to repeal the Texas DREAM Act, proof of citizenship for voter registration, Preliminary SAT exemption for Texas Success Initiative Assessment requirements, and in-person board meeting requirements.
View the presentation slides here.
FY26 Facilities Maintenance Plan
After undergoing a reorganization, ACC’s facilities and operations areas were merged into the new Facilities Management Division in September 2024. The division is co-led by Dr. Michael Garcia, Associate Vice Chancellor (AVC) of Maintenance and Operations, and Aziz Hussaini, AVC of Campus Planning, Construction, and Sustainability.
During the board’s work session, Garcia and Hussaini presented repair and renewal projects planned for next year. The expected work totals $11.5 million and is included in the FY26 budget. They also explained the College’s approach to replacement, renewal, and preventative maintenance projects.
They noted that there is an $85 million backlog of deferred maintenance projects, and most are located on our older campuses, such as Riverside, Eastview, and Northridge. Garcia and Hussaini are currently working to develop a multi-year facilities maintenance plan.
View the presentation slides here.
Hourly Employee Data Discussion
After multiple trustees asked for information on ACC’s hourly employees, Vickers shared data on the College’s hourly workforce at the board work session. He said there are issues surrounding hourly employees that need to be addressed, and that this is the start of a longer conversation.
ACC’s philosophy is to primarily staff operations with full-time, benefits-eligible employees. However, the College needs part-time workers for certain circumstances—to cover “off-hours,” augment full-time staff where work is less than 20 hours per week, or for actual temporary assignments that are less than one semester. Hourly employees are not eligible for benefits.
The College has about 1,500 active hourly employees. Approximately 40% of those are Continuing Education or Adult Education hourly instructors. Hourly staff account for about 10% of the total staff workforce, both in terms of work hours and payroll, and hourly instructors account for only about 3% of total instruction.
Although assignments are temporary, employees are not—about half (50%) of hourly employees have been at ACC for 1 to 5 years, and 17% have been at the College for more than 5 years. About a third (33%) of hourly employees have worked at the College for less than one year.
View the presentation slides here.
Contracts Approved
Trustees voted to authorize the College to negotiate and execute a contract for districtwide external financial auditing services and approved a request from a Bastrop County taxpayer to refund penalty and interest accrued on a tax payment.
View all agendas and recordings from the meeting here. Recordings are usually available by the Thursday following the meeting.