The Board of Public Education for the City of Savannah and the County of Chatham adopted the fiscal year 2026 budgets for all funds on June 25 and recommended a combined maintenance‑and‑operation millage rate of 17.331 mills, a 0.15‑mill rollback from the tentative rate presented in June.

The adopted general fund budget totals $656,639,339. The board recorded estimated revenue sources as $438,111,005 in local revenue, $215,284,590 in state revenue and $1,300,000 in federal revenue, with a planned use of fund balance of $1,943,744. The board also adopted budgets for capital projects ($162,123,459), special revenue funds, and other funds, and recommended 0 mills for general obligation bond debt.

Deputy Superintendent Stacey Taylor told the board the district is shifting toward “return on investment” budgeting, saying the district has developed a program inventory, launched an ROI dashboard and will use midyear checkpoints and monthly expenditure tracking to evaluate programs. Taylor said the district had “laid the groundwork to make return on investment, ROI, a core part of our budget decision‑making process.”

Board members discussed the district’s projected fund balance and reserve targets at length. Staff estimated an end‑of‑year unassigned fund balance around $186 million—above the board’s three‑month target but well below the five‑month ceiling the board referenced. Board members noted the recommended millage would reduce local tax revenue by roughly $2.8 million compared with the tentative rate and emphasized the tradeoffs between tax relief and maintaining reserves for unanticipated costs such as transportation, vacancies, facility repairs and emergency response.

Several board members urged stronger year‑round engagement and earlier, more detailed budget scenarios — for example, a menu showing revenue and expenditure outcomes at alternative rollback levels — so members and the public can better see what specific cuts or uses of fund balance would mean for programs and services. Board members also discussed a vacancy factor of about $22.4 million and said prolonged vacancies had educational impacts in classrooms across the district.

The board’s recommended millage must be advertised as a tax increase under state law because it does not match the tax assessor’s rollback calculation; staff cited OCGA 48‑5‑32.1 in explaining the required advertising. The board adopted the budgets and directed staff to advertise the recommended millage rates as required by law. The board approved the motion by voice vote.