Waunakee budget committee approves 2024-25 budget changes, flags post-employment and food-service risks

WAUNAKEE, Wis. — The Waunakee Community School District Budget Committee on June 4 approved the district’s formal June budget-change document for the 2024-25 fiscal year and discussed ongoing structural concerns, including an unfunded post-employment benefit liability and food-service fund shortfalls.

Allie, Staff member, told the committee that “every June, we have a formal DPI process that we're required to do where we bring you any budget changes from the final draft of the budget that was approved last fall,” and asked the committee to approve the document for publication after full-board approval.

That document reflects routine adjustments, Allie said, including transfers between general and restricted funds and updates to common school funds once the state posts official numbers in January. "Any changes that were required to be moved from between fund 10, 49, 50, and 73, we made those changes for our balanced budget," Allie said.

Staff emphasized two continuing areas of concern. A staff member (name not specified in the record) told the committee that Fund 73, the post-employment benefit trust, is "a real challenge" because the district paused regular contributions to the trust during the pandemic-era budget cycles when state increases were provided and "we no longer budgeted for our contribution to the post-employment benefit trust fund." That staff member said an actuary’s recommended annual transfer is roughly $550,000 and that the district will likely need to resume transfers in 2025-26 unless state budget action provides additional resources.

The committee also heard that Fund 50, the district’s food-service fund, is trending toward a negative balance. The same staff member said a prior food-service director left at the end of 2024 and the new director, who started in January, has been realigning expenditures and revenues. "Our revenues and our expenses in fund 50 aren't aligned," the staff member said, citing declines in catering demand and lower revenue from a participating private school, Madison Country Day School.

Committee members discussed how the district has used referendum-eligible funds (Fund 49) to realign costs that are eligible for referendum support — such as technology and maintenance projects — to free up general-fund dollars for ongoing needs. The staff member cautioned that this transfer strategy "is not a sustainable long term approach" and noted the board established a goal of a zero end-of-year balance for the fiscal year just closed.

Committee member Mark (role/title not specified) asked whether the district knows the actuarial target for Fund 73; a staff member replied that the independent actuary’s recommendation is "roughly 550 and I think 50,000" (approximately $550,000). The staff member said assets in Fund 73 are at a high point now because earlier liabilities were grandfathered and new employees are on a prefunded model, but that transfers will likely resume in 2025-26.

The committee voted to approve the June budget-change document and subsequently approved annual fund-balance classifications; members indicated the district’s fund balance ended the year at about 11 percent, which matched the board target.

The committee also discussed timeline implications for the 2025-26 budget. Staff said they will bring a third draft to the July board meeting and seek to present a full third draft at the annual meeting in August, noting, however, that state budget timing could leave the annual meeting’s materials without finalized state numbers.

The committee’s approvals on June 4 were procedural approvals of the budget-change document and fund-balance classifications; the record shows members said "Aye" to both votes during roll calls, and staff said the documents will be forwarded to the full board and published as required.

Ending — The committee set a July timeline to produce a third draft for the board and said the district will review long-term solutions for Fund 73 and Fund 50 over the summer and at a planned board retreat, contingent on state budget outcomes.