Trustees seek multiple fiscal analyses as Washoe budget outlook stays flat

The Washoe County School District Board of Trustees on Feb. 11 heard a detailed presentation on preparation of the district’s fiscal year 2025–26 budget and voted to direct the superintendent to prepare several targeted analyses to guide upcoming budget decisions.

The discussion, led by Chief Financial Officer Mark Mathers and Budget Director Jeff Bozzo, centered on the district’s dependence on the state. "99% of our general fund revenues come from the state," Mathers told the board, emphasizing that statewide revenue projections and the legislature’s final actions will determine the district’s available funds. Trustees said they want staff to return with practical options before the June budgeting deadlines.

Why this matters: Nevada’s Pupil-Centered Funding Plan and the State Education Fund determine most school district revenues. Mathers and Bozzo told trustees the governor’s recommended budget currently shows only very small statewide increases in per-pupil funding and that sales-tax-driven revenues remain weak. Locally, the district faces falling enrollment, rising retirement costs and the fixed start-up costs of a new high school.

State and revenue outlook - District staff summarized the Pupil-Centered Funding Plan (the State Education Fund’s primary account) and called the statewide revenue picture "incredibly flat." The governor’s recommended budget shows an increase in total funding of about 2.1% in fiscal 2026 and 2.4% in fiscal 2027, but those gains are modest and vary by category. - Mathers noted the adjusted base per-pupil amount on a statewide basis rose only from $9,414 in FY25 to $9,416 in FY26 — "$2 per student." He cautioned that the statewide figure is not the district’s final allocation and that equity adjustments will change local outcomes. - Sales tax underperformance is a primary concern: staff cited a roughly $90 million shortfall in actual sales tax versus earlier projections for FY24, and said sales tax represents about 40% of State Education Fund…