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CFO outlines budget‑book changes, Blueprint implementation and revenue uncertainty
Summary
CFO Lisa Howell told the board the FY26 proposed operating budget book is being redesigned for clarity, explained restricted vs. unrestricted funding presentation and said the administration is modeling impacts of potential state per‑pupil funding changes.
Lisa Howell, chief financial officer for Prince George's County Public Schools, told the board Jan. 23 that the proposed FY26 operating budget book (roughly 300 pages) will be revised to be more user friendly and to show unrestricted changes more clearly.
Howell said the district must present budgets in the state's required 15 expenditure categories, which combines restricted and unrestricted funds and can obscure year‑over‑year operational changes. To address that, the administration said it is breaking out unrestricted changes and plans to phase in clearer visual summaries and percentage deltas to highlight material shifts.
Howell also discussed the Office of Integrity and Compliance (OIC). The budget currently includes funding for OIC but the administration identified House Bill 370 pending in the General Assembly that would shift budget responsibility for that office from PGCPS to Prince George's County government. "If this bill goes through, the cost altogether will not come out of our budget and will become a part of the county budget," Howell said.
Board members asked about a recent governor's proposal that could reduce per‑pupil funding by about $163. Howell said the administration is modeling revenue scenarios and will update assumptions as the General Assembly acts; she warned several moving parts (retirement changes, county actions) could offset or worsen the district's position.
Howell told the board the requested cycle budget book coming later in the spring will include a different student budgeting section reflecting Blueprint implementation and the metrics to allocate school funds.
Board members recommended more pictorial summaries, explicit year‑over‑year dollar and percentage deltas and clearer explanations of large line‑item changes to make the book accessible to the public and to county decision makers.
The exchange took place during the Division of Budget and Management Services presentation at the FY26 budget work session.
