Bastrop Independent School District earned the highest fiscal accountability rating under the Financial Accountability Rating System of Texas (FIRST) for the 2025-26 school year.

The gist: At a Sept. 15 Board of Trustees meeting, Chief Financial Officer Mike White announced that Bastrop ISD earned 98 out of 100 points, two points higher than last year, in the School FIRST audit. This is classified as a Superior Achievement in the rating scale, which the district has maintained for the last eight years.
Explained: According to the Texas Education Agency, School FIRST is used to assess the district’s financial management, improve the management of money in the district and increase financial accountability within the public education system.

The audit tests the finances from the 2024-2025 fiscal year, based on 21 indicators that cover timeliness of payments, debt, student enrollment and more.

Construction is underway on Austin-Bergstrom International Airport's temporary midfield concourse, Concourse M, as part of the larger Journey with AUS expansion project. Airport officials, city leaders and construction partners celebrated the concourse's groundbreaking Sept. 29.

How we got here: ABIA's South Terminal closed March 31 and was later demolished. Allegiant Air and Frontier Airlines, which operated out of the South Terminal, have since moved to the main Barbara Jordan Terminal. The demolition made way for the construction of Concourse M, a temporary six-gate facility that will help relieve passenger congestion during Barbara Jordan Terminal's Concourse A remodeling and future 26-gate Concourse B and tunnel project.

The details: Concourse M is slated to feature a variety of passenger amenities including a coffee market, grab-and-go concessions, retail options, a pet relief room and shaded outdoor areas. The concourse will also only be accessible through a shuttle bus which will leave from Gate 13 out of the Barbara Jordan Terminal.

Stay tuned: Airport officials said Concourse M has a targeted opening date of spring 2028.

Check out six Austin-area stories trending Sept. 28-Oct. 2.

1. Round Rock OKs alcohol sales in The District

2. GFiber breaks ground in Georgetown, plans 2027 service launch

3. Lammes Candies returns under new owners, with holiday preorders open now

4. Bastrop County property tax rate to rise 6.2%

5. 1,000 apartments cleared for MoPac site in Southwest Austin despite Circle C residents' traffic, safety concerns

6. Pflugerville to gain 2 restaurants, plus other business news

Austin leaders are preparing for the arrival of new advanced aircraft like electric vertical take-off and landing, or eVTOL, vehicles.

The details: Under a new Federal Aviation Administration program, the vehicles are now being evaluated for passenger and cargo transportation as well as emergency response. The Texas Department of Transportation-led Project Nexus aims to eventually extend air taxi networks between Austin, Houston, Dallas and San Antonio.

As the FAA manages airspace, Austin officials noted the city will likely have little authority over eVTOL operations. However, Austin's transportation, aviation, public safety, land use and legal departments will be involved in a local response to the arrival of the aircraft in town.

The city and LIFT Aircraft had previously partnered on an unsuccessful application to the FAA's eVTOL testing initiative. That proposed "Project AMP" would've used LIFT's fleet for air taxi operations cross Greater Austin, according to the 2025 project application obtained through a public records request.