Norwalk board approves FY26 reconciled budget after mayor adds $500,000 for special-education staff

The Norwalk Board of Education on Wednesday, June 18, approved a reconciled FY26 operating budget that includes an additional $500,000 the city contributed to restore special-education supervisory positions and an itinerant assistant principal for prekindergarten and elementary special education.

The vote came after finance staff walked board members through budget-line reporting that some had read as a 12% increase to the superintendent’s line; staff said that comparison used prior-year original-budget figures and that, on a revised-budget basis, the superintendent’s pay reflects about a 2% variance that accounts for taxes. Linda (finance staff) told the board, “when you compare the revised budget for that line item to her original budget for this year, you won't see a 12% increase. You'll see somewhere along the line of a 2% increase.”

Why it matters: Board members repeatedly pressed for clarity about cuts that would remove student-facing positions. Several members said restoring positions quickly was necessary so teachers and administrators would know by the July 1…