The Grand Forks Public School Board on July 29 approved a preliminary budget and tax levy for fiscal year 2025-26 and set a public hearing at 6 p.m. Sept. 8 at the Mark Sanford Education Center, while administrators warned the district is unlikely to meet its goal of a 15% general fund carryover by June 30, 2026.

Business manager Brandon Baumbach said the preliminary filing follows the county form SFN 91-49 and reflects maximum mill levies the district can set. “None of those have changed from the prior year. They're all the same in total of a 130.68 mills across a number of different buckets,” Baumbach said.

District leaders told the board the preliminary figures show a structural shortfall that would continue into the next fiscal year unless revenues or expenditures change. Baumbach and Superintendent Dr. Brenner summarized the 2024-25 wrap-up: revenues came in roughly $1 million below budget and expenditures exceeded budget by about $1.7 million, largely because salaries and benefits ran higher than anticipated. That mismatch produced a projected gap of roughly $2.9 million in the preliminary budget presented on July 29.

Dr. Brenner described the practical effect on the district's rainy-day balance: “It would be, at this point, difficult to reach that goal of 15 by 06/30/2026,” noting enrollment and emergent student needs increased staffing and reduced the expected savings. He and Baumbach also explained that property tax “caps” (applied by the county auditor process) mean the preliminary mill figures represent maximums and the final mill rate could be lower after the county computes caps and final valuations.

Board members asked for follow-up detail. Dr. Lund asked whether the fraud loss was charged to last year’s budget; Baumbach said the loss is reported in last year’s building fund, not the general fund. Several board members asked for clearer line-item context for future requests so the board can see how a new ask would affect specific budget lines; Baumbach said those numbers are available and can be provided with future requests.

The board also heard that timing required the preliminary filing now so the county can publish notice ahead of state deadlines: the board will consider public comment on Sept. 8 and meet again Sept. 22 to act on the final budget before county deadlines in October.

The board voted to approve the preliminary budget and tax levy and to hold the public hearing Sept. 8 at 6 p.m. The motion passed on a roll-call vote recorded as 10 yes, 0 no, 1 absent.