Editor’s Note: The above video provides back-to-school dates for Central Texas.

AUSTIN (KXAN) — As the new school year kicks off, several local districts are looking to attract new teachers by increasing salaries.

The budget decisions come as state lawmakers fought over school choice and teacher pay at the Capitol this year. They failed to approve any additional funding for teacher salaries in the regular session, but the Speaker of the House said a special session focused on education was “all but certain” this fall.

KXAN reached out to all 58 school districts in our viewing area to compare starting salaries across the board. The maps below show salaries in each district for new teachers with no experience.

Of the districts that have released new pay scales for the 2023-24 school year, Del Valle ISD is offering the highest starting salary, at $58,000. That’s a 7.4% increase, or $4,000, over 2022-23.

“Del Valle ISD teachers and staff are the heart of the district, providing our students with care and love,” Superintendent Dr. Annette Tielle said in a press release. “Our raises over the past several years set DVISD apart and make it a destination district for educators and staff across the state.”

Bastrop ISD an Lake Travis ISD have the second-highest starting salary announced so far, $56,000, an increase of 5.7% for both districts over the 2022-23 school year.

The new starting salary in Austin ISD is $55,844, a 7% increase. The updated compensation package for staff means the districts will spend up to $53 million of its reserve funds.

“There’s a little bit of risk with this budget, but there’s a real risk of not educating our students,” AISD Board President Arati Singh said in a statement. “This is long overdue, so I’m excited to support it.”

Manor ISD, Leander ISD, Eanes ISD, Dripping Springs ISD and Pflugerville ISD will also offer new teachers at least $55,000. In the 2022-23 school year, Manor ISD had the highest starting pay among local districts, at $54,590.

Liberty Hill ISD, Hutto ISD, Round Rock ISD and Georgetown ISD are all offering just less than $55,000 for new teachers with no experience in the upcoming school year.

Of the districts that have set budgets so far, 27 will offer less than $50,000, including McDade ISD.

McDade Superintendent Heather Stidham told KXAN the district is a 1A school competing with 4A, 5A and 6A schools in the county. “In comparison our starting pay is significantly lower because funding is based on [average daily attendance],” Stidham said. “Our school system is much smaller than those that surround us within Bastrop County.”

Two local districts, Lometa ISD and Richland Springs ISD, use the state minimum salary of $33,660 from the Texas Education Agency.

Most districts adopted increases between 2% and 7% for the 2023-24 school year.

Johnson City ISD currently stands as an outlier, with a 13% increase in the starting salary. A teacher with no experience there will earn $51,500 in 2023-24, up from $45,574 the previous school year. Cameron ISD increased starting salaries by 12.4%, while San Saba ISD increased by 8.3%.

Sixteen districts did not increase starting salaries for the new school year, including Lockhart ISD. The district’s board approved a budget with a $710,000 deficit, citing “historic public school funding gaps across Texas and legislative inaction.” A press release from the district called out legislators for failing to address public school funding, “despite multiple opportunities presented.”