Morton board adopts final fiscal 2025–26 budget after revenue adjustments

The Morton Community Unit School District 709 Board of Education approved its final budget for fiscal year 2025–26 following a public hearing and a staff presentation on Sept. 2.

Lisa (last name not provided in the meeting record), district finance presenter, told the board she had updated figures since the August presentation and that the primary changes were on the revenue side. She described revised Education Benefit (EBF) and CPPRT (corporate personal property replacement tax) amounts, a modest addition to projected interest income and the receipt of some unexpected federal funds. "At one point, we didn't think we were gonna be receiving Title 2 funds. Now we are," she said.

Lisa said the adjustments increased the projected balance in the Education Fund compared with her earlier estimate. She explained small expenditure tweaks mainly reflected personnel changes and that the district moved some transportation revenue back to the Education Fund after the state increased transportation reimbursement.

There were no public comments during the budget hearing. After questions from the board were answered, the board approved the final budget on a roll-call vote.

The presenter said the budget remained conservative on expenditures with only minor changes; the principal adjustments were revenue-driven. The presenter also described how adding approximately $350,000 a year over five years would materially increase fund balances, as shown in the district’s projection pages.

The meeting record does not include a detailed line-by-line budget in the public comments portion of the hearing; the board approved the budget as presented and directed administrative staff to implement it under standard reporting procedures.