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District finance staff brief board on state budget changes: COLA, TK add-on and a discretionary block grant
Summary
The board heard a state budget update describing a 2.3% COLA, a new TK add-on payment and a $558,000 district estimate for a discretionary student-support/professional-development block grant; the district will plan use through 2029.
Staff member Anita presented a state budget update, telling the board that "the k 12 education budget fares really well in the state's adopted budget."
Nut graf: Anita summarized the major state funding items that affect the district — the 2.3% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA), new per-ADA funding for transitional kindergarten and a discretionary student support and professional development block grant — and reviewed risks tied to federal policy, cash deferrals and enrollment trends.
Anita highlighted that the state provided the full 2.3% COLA and noted a one-time discretionary block grant that the district estimates at about $558,000 (roughly $350 per ADA); the state had not provided resource codes at the time of the presentation and the funds could be spent through 2029. She also described the larger transitional-kindergarten investment: the TK add-on rose to about $5,005.45 per ADA and the state changed staffing ratios toward 10:1, prompting some class-size/staffing adjustments locally.
She warned the board about cash-deferral mechanics: the state may defer June apportionments and pay them in July, a difference between state budget accounting and district cash-flow timing that the district monitors. Anita also reviewed changes to expanded-learning funding rates and said the district received a slightly smaller-than-expected allocation for expanded learning but that the state set a floor to minimize local losses.
Ending: Anita said district staff will develop a plan for the discretionary grant, meet with cabinet and later return to the board with specific expenditure proposals.
