Lebanon Community School Corp previews 2026 budget, flags revenue shifts from Senate Bill 1

Staff member (school finance staff) presented an overview of Lebanon Community School Corporation's proposed 2026 budget and warned that recent state law changes will shift how property-tax revenue affects school funds.

The presentation outlined six budget funds — education, operations, debt service, operating referendum, referendum debt service and a rainy day fund — and said the district will ask the board later in the meeting to adopt a resolution permitting monthly transfers from the education fund to the operations fund during calendar year 2026. The staff member said that, if exercised in full, the monthly authorization would total just under $5,000,000 over 12 months but stressed the board would not be required to transfer the full amount.

The transfer mechanism exists because items moved from the former general fund into the operations fund in 2019 (utilities, human resources, superintendent salary and similar costs) are not supported by property-tax levies that principally fund operations. The staff member said the Department of Education advises keeping education-to-operations transfers at or below 15% of education-support revenue to avoid additional reporting requirements.

The presentation focused on how Senate Enrolled Act 1 (commonly discussed as Senate Bill 1) will change the district's revenue picture. The staff member said the law phases in larger homestead deductions and adds a $300 homestead credit billed as a late-session amendment; that credit reduces the total property-tax revenue available to taxing units. Unlike…