Nicole Conley Johnson, Austin ISD's chief financial officer, spoke on the impacts of recapture before the Texas House of Representatives Committee on Public Education on Tuesday.

Austin ISD's chief financial officer appeared before the Texas House of Representatives' Committee on Public Education on Tuesday to speak about the impact of recapture on AISD and local taxpayers.Implemented in 1993, recapture, also known as "Robin Hood," requires school districts that are deemed "property wealthy" to share property tax revenue with school districts deemed "property poor." AISD is the single largest contributor to state recapture in Texas. AISD CFO Nicole Conley Johnson said in fiscal year 2017-18, AISD is expected to pay more than half a billion dollars to the state's recapture system."Nowhere is the impact or the ballooning obligation more visible than here in Central Texas, where recapture has absolutely skyrocketed," she said in her testimony to the committee.Although school districts in Central Texas represent only about 8 percent of statewide student enrollment, they pay over 28 percent of the overall recapture payment, which amounts to about $600 million per year, Johnson said.She also spoke of the "unintended and inequitable burden" state recapture has imposed on local taxpayers. If the district were to save the $406 million it contributed in FY 2016-17 to the state's recapture system, it could lower its tax rate by 35 cents on the dollar and save the average AISD homeowner about $1,400."That is substantial relief when you look at the impact of recapture on our taxpayers," she said.The skyrocketing allocation toward state recapture is also hindering AISD's ability to retain teachers, Johnson said. Most teachers cannot afford to live in Austin, and the district does not have the means to offer competitive salaries, leading to an exodus of teachers to nearby school districts."When we compare our teacher salaries to other urban school districts, AISD comes in dead last," Johnson said. "When we compare to our regional counterparts, we rank second to last."Because of AISD's diverse socioeconomic makeup, Johnson argued that the district has a greater need for qualified teachers. Almost 60 percent of AISD families meet federal poverty guidelines and nearly a third of students are English Language Learners, she said."Our students and families face many challenges," Johnson said. "Even though AISD is property wealthy, the students and families we serve are not."Solutions that Johnson presented to the committee included an update to the cost of education index, which adjusts the state funding allotment based on economic factors, such as size of the district, teacher salaries in neighboring districts and the percentage of low-income students within the district. The index has not been updated since 1989."We believe there should be variability in the funding formula, but it should reflect the true reality of what we are experiencing," she said.At minimum, Johnson suggested the committee tie property value increases to the increases in the state's "basic allotment," or the legislatively mandated share of funds distributed to each school district."This would go very far in supporting the programming that has allowed us to make significant progress academically," she said.