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District presents conservative five‑year financial projections; board told referendum could reduce reactive maintenance costs
Summary
Kaneland CUSD 302 administrators presented five‑year budget projections showing a projected operating deficit driven by operations & maintenance and transportation; staff said a successful facilities referendum would allow more proactive maintenance planning and could reduce emergency spending.
District finance staff presented a five‑year projection model using Forecast5 software and recommended conservative assumptions to the Kaneland CUSD 302 Board of Education during the meeting.
Doctor Jackie Bogan said the district’s current operating funds budget is $76.4 million and outlined the primary revenue and expense assumptions used in the model, including a CPI assumption of 3.42% for the coming year and 3% thereafter, and a conservative assumption of $11 million per year in new equalized assessed value (EAV) for the next five years (the district’s current total EAV was stated as about $1.1 billion). “A 1% change in CPI would affect our tax levy by about $600,000,” Bogan said, describing sensitivity to assumptions.
On the expense side, Bogan said salaries, benefits, transportation and facility maintenance are the biggest cost drivers. She told trustees the district includes known contract increases for staff covered under the KEA agreement and uses 3% for other placeholders. Bogan said the projections show a continuing deficit and that the primary drivers of the shortfall are operations and maintenance and transportation; those areas will be monitored closely.
Board members asked about lapsed‑expenditure budgeting (unfilled positions), handling fluctuations in federal funding (IDEA included in federal totals) and health‑insurance increases. Bogan said the district budgets for anticipated positions and will provide historical lapse averages to show the likely difference between budgeted and actual expenditures at year end.
On the potential facilities referendum, Bogan said passage would allow the district to plan rather than react — reducing emergency repairs and enabling proactive maintenance scheduling. She said referendum projects would change the timing and composition of operations and maintenance costs (not eliminate maintenance needs altogether) and that administration will bring a recommendation to revise the district’s fund‑balance policy at the next meeting.
No board action was required on the presentation; Bogan said administration’s goal is to present a balanced budget in June.
