Auburn schools propose $64.7 million FY2026 budget, citing health insurance, special education and salary costs

Superintendent Dr. Dorff presented the Auburn School Department’s proposed $64,718,893 FY2026 budget at an April 7 Auburn City Council workshop, saying the plan “supports students, makes responsible financial decisions, and plans thoughtfully for the future.”

The proposal would raise the total budget by about $2.6 million, or 4.2 percent, from FY25. The local share request to the city is $21,488,252, an increase of $733,514, or 3.5 percent, Dr. Dorff said. She described the budget as built around four pillars: student success, equity and access, operational efficiency and long-term sustainability.

The budget document supplied to councilors and the public shows Auburn School Department serves 3,364 students across nine schools with roughly 600 staff. District demographics cited by Dr. Dorff: 52.2 percent of students are economically disadvantaged, 19.5 percent receive special-education services, 11.8 percent are multilingual learners and 6.3 percent are experiencing homelessness. Enrollment rose by 96 students year over year.

Dr. Dorff said the increase in the proposal is driven primarily by three line items: health insurance cost increases (16.6 percent, roughly $1.1 million), special-education costs (9.6 percent, about $1.34 million) and contractual salary increases (4.6 percent, about $1.39 million). On revenue, the district expects a state subsidy of $32,046,130 (a $2.8 million increase), debt service aid of roughly $8.83 million and plans to use $1.75 million from fund balance, a $600,000 reduction from the prior year.

On staffing, the department will eliminate two currently vacant positions — a middle school guidance counselor and a Spanish teacher at Auburn Middle School — and reclassify a special-education role to support multilingual learners at the high school. Two class-size-reduction positions will be funded temporarily via federal grant funds (Dr. Dorff said the district will review that need year to year).

Councilors pressed staff on several points. Councilor Gary asked how long the grant-funded positions will last; Dr. Dorff said the positions will be filled “year to year” with the expectation consolidation work and moves of multilingual learners between schools could reduce need. On the grant source, Dr. Dorff said the funds are federal Title allocations that come to the state and flow to the district.

Several councilors focused on special education costs and the district’s mitigation steps. Laura Shaw, director of student services, told the council much of the special-education increase is driven by fixed costs the district cannot control, including tuition and related services for students placed in private special-purpose schools and the costs of MaineCare-billable services. She described efforts to capture additional reimbursements through MaineCare for district-provided OT, PT and speech services, and to claim 100 percent reimbursement for transportation in some cases, noting such efforts can require upfront investment in staff to recapture revenue.

The school leadership described facility planning and a multi-year facilities master plan process that includes exploring grade reconfigurations and potential consolidation. Assistant Superintendent Scott Neer said the school committee has voted to support including sixth grade at Auburn Middle School and the department will name an architect/engineer of record to study scenarios and costs, with advisory committee work expected to continue over the next several months. Neer said the district anticipates the sixth-grade inclusion could occur in fall 2028 and that planning work on other facilities will proceed in parallel.

On performance and outcomes, Dr. Dorff highlighted a 95 percent graduation rate last year and expanded CTE and dual-enrollment offerings at the high school. She pointed to per-pupil spending (excluding debt service) of $15,011 in FY24, below the statewide average of $18,839, and noted Auburn was about 6 percent over the state’s Essential Programs and Services (EPS) funding formula last year, compared with a statewide average of 26.4 percent.

Councilors also asked about class sizes (district averages of roughly 16–21 by level, with variability by subject), the district’s fund balance (Dr. Dorff said the district’s fund balance was about $5 million as of the FY23 audit, and FY24 audit work was not complete), and supports for students experiencing homelessness. Dr. Dorff and staff noted the district’s McKinney-Vento liaison and asked for continued community support; they described targeted attendance teams and communications strategies intended to improve daily attendance and graduation outcomes.

The presentation concluded with staff inviting council questions and noting the school committee and city council still must act on the budget schedule that will go to voters in a citywide budget validation referendum in June.