The Waunakee Community School District approved a 5.97% property‑tax levy for the 2025‑26 budget and instructed administrators to find about $2.3 million in levy reductions while exploring options to cover that shortfall, district officials said at an informational session.

"In the end, the school board approved a property tax levy of 5.97%," Steve Summers, the district's Executive Director of Operations, said while walking attendees through the budget chronology. He added the board "directed administration to reduce the property tax levy by approximately $2,300,000." The motion and direction were described at the meeting; no roll‑call vote tally was provided in the session transcript.

Why it matters: Summers said the district faced competing pressures after the state approved the 2025‑27 budget. The per‑student revenue‑limit increase remained $325, which Summers said was funded entirely by local property taxpayers because the state did not increase equalization aid. Offsetting that, the state raised special‑education categorical aid and high‑cost special‑education reimbursements and increased open‑enrollment reimbursement rates, which together added several hundred thousand dollars in spendable revenues to the district.

Summers noted specific figures cited at the session: open‑enrollment revenues increased by about $350,000, high‑cost special‑education aid by about $400,000 and special‑education categorical aid by about $660,000. The district also reported a contingency fund increase from $100,000 to $200,000. "That dollar amount has been $100,000 for the past 25 plus years," Summers said, explaining the board approved raising the contingency to better cover emergencies.

The district also reported receiving a clean‑energy reimbursement check "over $1,000,000," Summers said, tied to solar and geothermal investments at Heritage Elementary and the intermediate school; he said the board has deposited the funds but "has yet to determine how to utilize these funds." Summers added the district expects a future reimbursement related to the middle school that "will exceed $4,000,000" once processed.

Enrollment and classification: The school district's official third‑Friday count showed a decline of 42 students compared with the prior year, Summers said, which moved Waunakee into Wisconsin's 'declining enrollment' classification under the state revenue‑limit system. He said enrollment is likely to rise slightly in 2026‑27 because the senior class is smaller than recent years.

4K implications: Summers flagged a state program, Get Kids Ready, that requires 4K community partners to decide by Feb. 1 whether to participate with the state; partners may not simultaneously partner with both the state program and the local district. "This new state program prohibits a 4K community partner from partnering with both the state of Wisconsin and their local school district," Summers said, adding administration aims to present contract offers to 4K partners in December and that the board has placed 4K planning as a top priority.

What comes next: Summers said the board will continue evaluating options to hold the levy below the revenue‑limit maximum and will work through covering the approximately $2.3 million the board chose not to levy. The district encouraged community feedback on operational referendums and high‑school planning through a planned 2026 outreach process and provided contact resources and a monitored email for questions.

Details and context: The district reported 4,413 students, about 600 staff, a 99% graduation rate and other performance indicators at the session. Summers urged community members to review budget planning documents posted on the district website and resources from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction for background.