District presents FY25–26 budget assumptions; staff warn of near‑term shortfall and health‑insurance uncertainty

District staff presented a high‑level update on fiscal‑year 2025–26 budget development at the March 18 Finance, Buildings and Grounds Committee meeting, detailing assumptions for wages, benefits, and other cost drivers and warning of an emerging budget gap.

In the committee briefing, administration outlined core planning assumptions used for the district’s preliminary modeling: a CPI‑U‑based wage assumption around 3% (district staff noted they were modeling roughly 2.5% movement in some scenarios); a forecasted health‑insurance increase of about 12.5%; dental insurance projected at about 5%; student transportation costs modeled at roughly 4%; and a utility‑cost assumption of…