Waunakee school board outlines 2025–26 budget, sets $49,000,463 tax levy and approves routine resolutions

The Waunakee Community School District presented its third draft budget for the 2025–26 school year and approved a series of routine resolutions at its annual meeting, including a motion to levy $49,000,463 for the coming year.

Ally, a finance staff member who presented the budget, said, "the third draft was approved by the school board in July. This budget was based on the governor's 2025 to 2027 state budget. It did include a tax levy of $49,000,000 and then an equalized property value increase of 5%. The tax rate that we calculated at that time was $9.35." She later summarized the district’s estimates for state aid, enrollment and contingency.

The draft assumes a 5% increase in equalized property value and an estimated tax rate of $9.35 per $1,000 of equalized value. The district’s estimated student count in the July third draft was 4,429; more recent data from the registrar, Julie, shows fall enrollment trending lower, with a current estimate near 4,382. Ally said the district budgeted an 18‑student increase in the third draft but that updated counts were lower than estimated.

The presenter and school finance staff described components that affect the draft: a state revenue cap change (an increase the presenter described as $325 per student in the state budget), recurring portions of the November 2024 referendum that…