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Scottsdale Unified board approves proposed 2025–26 budget, schedules June 24 public hearing
Summary
The Scottsdale Unified School District governing board voted to approve a proposed FY 2025–26 expenditure budget and set a public hearing and adoption timeline after staff outlined revenue pressures and planned uses of reserves.
The Scottsdale Unified School District governing board on June 10 approved a proposed fiscal year 2025–26 expenditure budget and scheduled a public hearing and adoption timeline, with the board calling a public hearing for June 24 at the Mojave District Annex.
Board leaders said the proposal reflects a projected enrollment/weight-count decline and one-time uses of fund balance to bridge revenue shortfalls while maintaining staffing and services. District finance staff told the board they are statutorily required to post a proposed budget no later than July 5 and to hold a public hearing at least 10 days after posting and adopt the budget by July 15.
The district projected a decrease of 463 weighted students, a corresponding base-revenue shortfall of about $2.3 million, and plans to use approximately $3.1 million of carryforward funds to balance operations. Staff also proposed moving $4.2 million from capital to maintenance-and-operations (M&O) to help cover M&O needs and to fund a across-the-board 1% increase for employees and a $1 million contribution toward medical insurance.
Board members discussed site-level impacts, including a 2.5 FTE reduction at Desert Mountain High School largely tied to shifts in special education staffing ratios. Staff said a full school-by-school memo on site-level reductions would be distributed to the board the next day.
The motion to approve the proposed budget and call the public hearing passed with four votes in favor and one abstention. The board directed staff to post the documents on the district and Arizona Department of Education websites and to present final adoption at the scheduled public hearing.
The vote outcome will not itself set final property tax rates; Maricopa County sets tax rates. Board members and staff explained the district intends to keep the rate essentially flat while recovering prior-year Quasimodo/Quasimier refund impacts (staff cited about $24.4 million in past refunds affecting cash on hand) over the coming years.
District staff asked the public to review posted budget documents and to attend the June 24 hearing for public comment. The board reiterated that final adoption is scheduled for the hearing and a later formal adoption step by July 15.
Ending: The district will post the proposed budget and notice tomorrow and hold the public hearing on June 24; board members said they expect continued review of staffing and program impacts during the adoption process.
