Milton projects roughly $1.09 million FY25 shortfall; district to use $700,000 stabilization allocation while awaiting state circuit‑breaker funds

At a finance subcommittee meeting of the Milton School Committee, district finance staff reported a projected operating shortfall for fiscal year 2025 of about $1,089,000 and said the district will rely in part on a $700,000 allocation to its stabilization fund while awaiting state special‑education transportation reimbursement known as the circuit‑breaker payment.

The update came as finance staff and committee members described ongoing work to identify and memorialize outstanding encumbrances so the district can close the fiscal year without a deficit. Finance staff described tracking changes since the March quarterly report and said the additional need was variously described during the meeting as $300,000 and as $389,000; combined with the earlier figures those numbers produce the roughly $1,089,000 shortfall projection that staff used in planning.

Why it matters: Massachusetts school districts cannot close a fiscal year in deficit, and the timing of supplemental state payments affects whether Milton must make interim operational decisions. School officials said the circulation of the state payment is outside local control and the district must balance the risk of assuming the money arrives with the risk of having to adjust after the fact.

Finance staff described the largest drivers of the variance as salary encumbrance issues and hourly staffing fluctuations. The district said manual processes for recording salary encumbrances contributed to unexpected costs: temporary staffing changes, employees returning from leave, custodial overtime and variations in instructional‑assistant hours were cited as examples that can accumulate across many positions. Finance staff noted the district’s overall operating budget is approximately $67,000,000, with the salary portion described as “50‑something million.” The meeting record said a single area of variance discussed was roughly $100,000, which staff characterized as significant within a single line item but relatively small compared with the total budget.

District staff said they are working with principals and department leaders — particularly athletics, facilities and special education — to determine what outstanding expenses are not yet memorialized in the accounting system so those obligations can be recorded before year‑end. “We do have to. We can't close the year in a deficit,” staff told the subcommittee when explaining why they are using the stabilization allocation and continuing to reconcile encumbrances.

Committee members and staff also discussed the state circuit‑breaker reimbursement for special‑education transportation. Town staff member Nick told the group he had attended a meeting in which attendees were confident the money would arrive but were not confident about the timing; the meeting record said the payment could come as early as June or slip into July or later because it is tied to other pieces of the state budget currently under negotiation.

Officials described two possible risk approaches: assume the state payment will arrive and apply it retroactively, or plan conservatively as though it will not arrive in time. Staff said they intend to proceed assuming the payment will arrive and to continue close monitoring and documentation of encumbrances; if the payment is delayed, staff said they will return to the committee with options.

The subcommittee heard that part of the remedy is improved internal controls and communication between payroll, human resources and the business office to capture changes in full‑time equivalent (FTE) status, leaves and hourly assignments as they occur. Members discussed the district’s lack of a permanent human resources director and said better HR documentation — for example, timely written notices when an aide’s hours change — would feed into payroll and finance systems and reduce manual reconciliation.

No formal budget vote or appropriation change was taken at the meeting; staff presented the closeout projection and described next steps for reconciling expenses and coordinating with town officials and the state as needed.

Ending: Staff said they will continue to refine the closeout number, work with principals and departments to memorialize outstanding expenses and coordinate with town finance staff on the use of the stabilization allocation while monitoring state action on the circuit‑breaker payment.