Anchorage School District previews FY26 budget that uses $49.8M in reserves, cuts staff and programs

ANCHORAGE — The Anchorage School District board on Feb. 4 received a preliminary fiscal 2026 budget from district staff that assumes zero growth in state funding, would use roughly $49.8 million in reserve fund balance to balance next year’s books, and would require program and staff reductions if the Legislature does not increase statutory funding.

Chief Financial Officer Andy Ratliff told the board the draft is “the most depressing document I’ve ever had to prepare in my professional career,” and warned it would have “far‑ranging impacts on our students, our staff, our families, the services we’re able to provide, the electives, sports.”

The budget presented to the Anchorage School District Board of Education assumes no increase in the Base Student Allocation (BSA) and sketches a mix of one‑time reserves and recurring reductions to reach balance. Administration said the district would request use of about $49,800,000 in fund balance in FY26; without that one‑time draw the district would need roughly that same amount in additional cuts on top of reductions already proposed.

Why it matters: administrators said the BSA has not kept pace with inflation for more than a decade, shifting costs to local taxpayers and forcing the district to rely on fund balance, federal one‑time aid and program reductions. Board members and staff said those choices increase financial risk and reduce the district’s flexibility to respond to enrollment shifts or unexpected emergencies.

What would change under the draft - Class sizes and staffing: The administration said it increased pupil‑teacher ratios (PTR) by four across grade levels for…