Greeley School District No. 6 previews 2026 proposed budget as state formula phase‑in adds modest funding

Greeley School District No. 6 in the county of Weld presented its proposed 2026 general fund budget during a June 9 work session, projecting roughly $331,000,000 in general fund revenue, a funded pupil count of about 22,004.37 and a per‑pupil funding estimate of $11,007.33.

The budget presentation by Miss Sponsler explained that the state’s phased implementation of the new School Finance Act increased base per‑pupil funding by the inflation rate (2.3%) this year and that the legislature applied a 15% phase‑in of the difference between the old and new formulas for the first year. Sponsler said full implementation over seven years would mean roughly $20,000,000 more to the district when complete.

Miss Sponsler said the district projects its general fund will be about $331 million next year, with state equalization (the School Finance Act) accounting for the largest share of that revenue. She told the board that 84% of general fund spending goes to salaries and benefits and that instructional and school supports are the largest expense categories. “So this is a good number to be paying attention to,” Sponsler said of the district’s general fund reserve purchases, noting one‑time purchases are the intended use of that balance.

Board members pressed and staff clarified several line items and context. Miss Sponsler said the district is projecting a small enrollment increase but intentionally kept the projection conservative. She noted preschool enrollment is not included in the funded pupil count because universal preschool is now funded through the Department of Early Childhood rather than the Department of Education.

Board discussion also addressed the district’s current operating gap and recent cuts. Doctor Pilch said the budget shows a roughly $7 million deficit for the coming year and that administrators sought to make cuts in central office before affecting schools, but some school‑level impacts were unavoidable. Doctor Pilch said the instructional technology department bore nearly $3,000,000 of the reductions. “We tried to make the cuts up here first… but you just can’t make $7,000,000 worth of cuts without there being some impact on the schools,” Doctor Pilch said.

Speakers raised federal funding risks outside the state formula. Doctor Campos Spitzing and others warned that federal action on budget reconciliation could end funding for TRIO programs by an early July vote; she said Greeley Dream Team receives about 43% of its funding from TRIO and serves some 700 district students. “If TRIO gets eliminated, 43% of Greeley Dream Team’s funding will be eliminated,” Campos Spitzing said. She also noted that the GEAR UP program — which is financed through other federal line items that appear in district budgets — could also be cut.

Separately, Doctor Pilch and board members said they met with health care leaders and with U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper to discuss proposed Medicaid cuts. Pilch said Medicaid reimbursement supports many school services — including some special education services, school nurses and health clerks — and that cuts could reduce the district’s ability to provide those services. “Our special education students receive many different services that are funded by Medicaid,” Pilch said.

Miss Sponsler and Doctor Pilch said the district will present the proposed budget again during the scheduled business meeting and that a public budget hearing will be held in that meeting. No formal adoption vote occurred during the work session.

The work session included several questions from board members about the history of per‑pupil funding, the prior budget stabilization factor and the degree to which recent state increases and inflation adjustments have changed revenue over the past several years. Sponsler and others explained that reductions from the budget stabilization factor in earlier years had kept per‑pupil funding flat and that recent legislative action to buy down that factor plus inflation adjustments are producing the current increases.

Board members praised the budget book’s graphics and transparency as a useful community resource and thanked staff for preparation of the document. Staff invited the public to review the full budget book for more breakdowns and data and said the district will host the formal budget hearing as part of its business meeting later the same evening.