Roaring Fork leaders outline plan to close $7.8 million gap after self‑insurance losses; board approved supplemental budget

Roaring Fork School District No. Re‑1 finance leaders told staff and union representatives on Jan. 30 that a series of errors around a 2023 move to self‑insurance, combined with missed budget items and lower revenue, created a $7,788,000 shortfall for the 2024–25 budget and contributed to recurring projected deficits for 2025–26.

The district’s chief financial officer, Christie Shaquoyne, said the self‑insurance fund collected about $8.3 million in premiums for 2023–24 while paying roughly $11.5 million in claims and administrative costs, producing “a 2 and a half million dollar shortfall.” She told the IBB (interest‑based bargaining) summit the district covered part of the 2023–24 shortfall with one‑time Meadowood project savings and general‑fund balance, and that the Board approved a supplemental budget the night before to address this year’s issues.

Why it matters: The shortfall followed a 2023 shift to a self‑insurance plan that the district later reversed. Leaders called out process and reconciliation failures that delayed detection of rising claims costs and left the district exposed; they also warned that even after the switch back to a managed plan, health‑care inflation could push premiums significantly higher in coming years.

What the district says it will do: Shaquoyne and presenting administrators outlined a package of one‑time and recurring measures to close the current gap and a forecasted plan for 2025–26. Measures implemented or proposed include using Meadowood savings and limited fund‑balance…