Broward schools face steep revenue shortfall as enrollment drops; district outlines $8.8M of initial cuts and longer planning steps

Broward County Public Schools staff told the school board on Tuesday that the district faces a significant structural gap as enrollment has declined and state per‑student funding produced only a modest increase for FY2026.

Finance staff summarized FY2026 pressures: falling student counts reduce formula revenue, employee benefit costs (healthcare, retirement and payroll taxes) have risen sharply and several central costs—textbook adoptions, school safety staffing, and other contractual commitments—were added to this year’s budget. "In fiscal year '26...the offset of the loss of 9,409 students is $85,000,000. So our total loss from the state is a reduction of $60,000,000 that fiscal year," the district's budget presenter said.

What staff proposed District leaders described an initial $8.8 million of cost‑savings measures identified across divisions and a planning target of $100 million to be achieved for FY2026 by a combination of attrition and other actions.…