Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the State Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board hears July state budget will leave general aid flat, tighten special‑education planning
Summary
District staff told the board the state budget adopted July 3 holds general state aid flat for two years, raises high‑cost special‑education aid percentages and adjusts special‑education reimbursement assumptions; staff warned federal funding uncertainty remains.
District staff briefed the Milton School Board on the recently adopted state budget and how it is likely to affect district revenues and special‑education reimbursement rates.
"The state budget was adopted on July 3," a district staff member said, summarizing the legislation as a compromise between the governor and legislature. The staff member told the board that general state aid (the equalization pool) will receive no increase for the next two years, an outcome district staff described as unusual in recent state budgets.
The presentation said the per‑pupil categorical aid remains at $742 per pupil and that the high‑cost special‑education formula would increase percentage coverage for qualifying excess costs in the coming years (district staff cited a rise to 150 percent for 2025–26 in one framework and 90 percent in the following year for the 2026–27 calculation). The staff member cautioned that special‑education reimbursement estimates are dependent on statewide cost calculations and that projected reimbursement rates can shift after final calculations; the district's recent reimbursement estimate for 2023–24 was about 30.6 percent, lower than an earlier projection.
The staff member said the district currently plans no program reductions while awaiting clarification of federal grant allocations, which staff said are still under review. Staff proposed scheduling a finance‑committee meeting in July or August to analyze the budget’s local effects before the district finalizes its fall budget decisions.
Board members asked follow‑up questions about what the budget means for Milton’s revenue ceiling, special‑education reimbursements and municipal property‑tax effects. The district said it will present updated estimates at a forthcoming finance meeting and that it is not yet changing staffing or programs pending more certainty about federal and state grant funding.
No formal board action occurred during the briefing. Staff said they will convene finance committee meetings and provide a more detailed fiscal outlook to the board at a later date.
