Budget officer: December financial model showed a significant gap; district building proposed budget after $10M+ reductions

Budget Officer Stuart Kessler presented a multi-year financial projection the district prepared in December and told the legal budget committee the model initially showed a large gap if the district maintained current service levels.

Kessler said the December projection used the governor's proposed budget and the district's known staffing and PERS assumptions at the time and that staff have since identified more than $10,000,000 in cuts and reductions in the current fiscal year to reduce the projected shortfall. "I've already identified cuts of of over $10,000,000 for for next year, and we've made reductions within this fiscal year as well," Kessler said. He added the district is updating the model and will present an updated version when the proposed 2025–26 budget is released.

Kessler reviewed the model's key assumptions, including projected cost-of-living adjustments for employee groups, special education cost trends and the uncertainty inherent in state legislative outcomes. He said he uses conservative revenue assumptions to avoid sudden midyear actions that would disrupt instruction.

Committee members discussed PERS rate changes. The meeting materials show actuarial-set PERS rates that will increase district contribution rates; administrators said their estimate of the overall impact on the district is roughly a 7.6 to 7.8 percentage-point increase in contribution rates for the coming rate-setting period. District staff noted legislation in process could provide temporary rate relief that would reduce next year's PERS cost by about $900,000 if adopted, but officials said they were not relying on that relief in the draft budget.