Denton ISD holds its top state finance grade at 98 of 100, losing points only on debt per dollar of property value

Denton ISD has again earned the state's highest financial accountability rating, scoring 98 of a possible 100 points in the Texas Education Agency's School FIRST system, according to the district's annual financial management report.

The report was the subject of a public hearing on the school board's agenda for its regular meeting Tuesday, Oct. 27. The 2001 state law behind the rating requires each district to prepare the report within two months of its final grade, and the district's presentation lists an advertised public hearing among the requirements.

How the grade works

FIRST, short for Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas, scores districts on 21 indicators covering whether they filed their audit on time, paid debts and payroll obligations, kept enough money on hand and reported accurate data. Any district scoring 90 or above gets an A, labeled Superior Achievement.

This year's rating looks back at the 2024-25 fiscal year, which ended June 30, 2025. Denton ISD received its preliminary result on Aug. 7, did not appeal, and the grade became final on Sept. 9, the report says. District documents describe the A as the latest in a run stretching back more than two decades.

Where the two points went

The district passed all four critical indicators and every ceiling indicator, and it scored 78 of 80 on the solvency measures. The only deduction came on the indicator comparing future debt payments with the taxable value of property in the district.

To earn the full 10 points, debt per $100 of assessed value has to be 4 or lower; Denton ISD's ratio was 6.8885, which earned 8 points.

Other figures in the report:

• The general fund held 90.23 days of cash and current investments at year's end, enough for full points.
• Current assets of about $1.11 billion covered current liabilities of about $237.3 million nearly 4.7 times over.
• Assigned and unassigned fund balances fell 15.76% on average over three years, short of the 25% decline that would have capped the grade.
• The administrative cost ratio was 6.16%, below the state's 8.55% limit, though the state did not score that indicator this year.

Statewide, 934 school systems received an A in the preliminary 2025-26 results, up from 866 a year earlier, while 27 received an F, according to the district's presentation.

Required disclosures

Among the report's required disclosures is a schedule of what the district reimbursed 11 people, the superintendent among them, for meals, lodging, travel, mileage and conference registration in fiscal 2025. The total was $51,886.46, with lodging the largest category at $21,362.72. Superintendent Susannah O'Bara accounted for $16,778.49 of it.

The district reported no business transactions with board members, no outside consulting pay for the superintendent and no gifts worth $250 or more to the superintendent or trustees from district vendors or bidders.

Sources

meetings.boardbook.org

meetings.boardbook.org

meetings.boardbook.org