Key facts (2025-26 school year)
- Total budget: about $667 million1
- Budgeted for loans (2025-26): about $166 million1
- Interest this year: about $101 million2
- Interest still owed after 2025-26: about $1.4 billion2
- Debt per student (2025): about $69,795, 6th of 11 similar districts, near the middle3
- Day-to-day spending per student (2024-25): $11,556, a bit above $11,380, the middle of the 10 other similar districts4
- Loan cost per average home: about $1,500 a year5
In short
Leander ISD borrows money to build schools, after voters say yes. It pays the loans back over many years, with interest. In 2025-26 it set aside about $166 million to pay its loans.1 About $1.4 billion of interest is still owed.2
Why it matters to your tax bill: the loan part of your school tax (the debt tax) pays these loans. An average home pays about $1,500 a year for them.5
The day-to-day budget: in 2024-25 the district spent about $27 million more than it took in. Without the interest it earned on savings, the gap would have been about $37.5 million.6 The board’s rule is to keep three months of savings (enough to run the schools for three months). The district projects 2.9 months for June 2027, just under the rule. See reserves and deficit.
Related: Start here · debt · interest · property tax bill · short version
Leander ISD borrows money to build schools. Voters must say yes first. The district pays the loans back over many years. In 2025-26, the district budgeted about $166 million for loan payments. The payments actually scheduled for that year were about $153 million.2
How school loans work
A school loan is a lot like a home loan. You borrow a big amount now. Then you pay it back a little at a time. You also pay extra, called interest.
The district sells “bonds” to borrow. A bond is a loan from investors. Each bond is a promise to pay them back, with interest.
Who pays
Home and business owners pay a loan tax. It is a separate part of the property tax bill. For an average home, the loan part was about $1,500 this year.5
About $1,000 of that went to interest.5
Where the money went this year
For every $3 spent on schools, about $1 went to loans.1
Some loans grow before they are paid
Some old loans did not need payments for years. Instead, the amount owed kept growing. These are called growing loans. They are like a credit card you do not pay for a long time.
So what: these loans cost more in the end, because interest builds up on interest.
The other side
- The district grew very fast, and borrowing is how Texas districts build schools. Voters approved the bonds.
- The district has refinanced older loans to cut costs (see refinancing).
What you can do or watch next
- Start with start here.
- Watch the tax rate the board sets each summer and bond sales on board agendas.
Changes to this page
- Nov. 2, 2026: We made the source link names plainer.
- Nov. 2, 2026: We made clear that the interest still owed is counted after this year’s payments, and showed how we got it.
Footnotes
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Leander ISD, 2025-26 Official Budget Book, “Summary of All Budgeted Funds,” page 9. Local copy of the page. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4
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Leander ISD, Annual Comprehensive Financial Report 2025, debt schedule, page 46. Local copy of the page. Our math: about $1.48 billion of interest scheduled as of June 30, 2025, less about $101 million due in 2025-26. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4
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Texas Comptroller local debt data, data.texas.gov, fiscal 2025: principal plus interest per student; our ranking among 11 similar districts. ↩
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TEA PEIMS actual financial data FY2025, operating spending ÷ enrollment; our math. ↩
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Our math: average taxable home value of $460,292 (district presentation, Aug 6, 2026, Presentation) times the loan tax rate of 33 cents per $100 (Aug. 6, 2026 packet, page 233), about $1,519 for 2026-27; about $1,553 for 2025-26 at a $470,461 value. Interest is about two-thirds of this year’s loan payments.2 ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4
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TEA PEIMS actual financial data and Leander ISD Annual Comprehensive Financial Report 2025, general fund: the fund balance fell about $27 million in 2024-25; interest earned on savings was $10.5 million. Our math; details on Reserves and deficit. ↩