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Winchester staff present FY‑26 operating budget, cite federal grant expirations and health‑insurance renewal
Summary
Finance staff previewed the FY‑26 budget: a 4.24% increase in the operating fund, a 0% health‑insurance renewal, lower federal grant carryforward as competitive grants ended, and reclassifications that raise some category comparisons.
Finance staff presented a preview of the fiscal year 2026 operating budget and supporting materials at the March 10 work session and told the board they will take the budget to city council for a preliminary briefing. The staff presentation showed a proposed $77,890,392 operating fund for FY‑26, a 4.24 percent increase over FY‑25.
Key points staff cited included a 0 percent health‑insurance renewal that reduced the district’s requested City appropriation and allowed a smaller borrowing (a “Citi request”) balance. Staff also noted a large year‑over‑year decline in federally funded grant budgets because several large competitive federal grants (TSL and metrics grants) ended and ESSER/ARPA funds were largely spent in FY‑25.
Staff explained some category changes reflect reclassification of staff and revenue: an apparent 28.37 percent increase in an “admin, attendance and health” bucket was driven partly by recoding positions (about $338,000), adding new early‑childhood special‑education staff (about $100,000) and accounting for Valley Health/DMAS MOU revenue (about $700,000) that is budget‑neutral. Staff said removing those items reduces the comparable increase to about 3.89 percent.
Why it matters: staff framed the FY‑26 ask as a reasonable salary initiative package and said the district’s request to the city (about $1.2 million in increased city funding) is consistent with comparable local jurisdictions. Presenters said full funding by the city council would be the second time in 10 years.
Board members asked about a decrease in technology spending in the presentation; staff said they would research reclassifications and report back. Staff also said they will present a slide showing the percentage of the city budget allocated to schools at the next meeting.
Ending: staff said the budget will be on the agenda for adoption at the next regular meeting unless board members request changes; finance staff said they would meet the division’s calendar for submission to the city.
