Greendale School Board previews balanced $38.2 million preliminary budget, proposes flat tax levy

Jonathan, the district finance presenter, told the Greendale School District board the administration is bringing forward a balanced preliminary operational budget of about $38,225,008 and a proposed tax levy that would remain flat from the current year. "We do not have direction on what's gonna happen next with the state budget," he said, noting staff built the plan on conservative assumptions.

The presentation outlined priorities and assumptions that shaped the draft budget: class‑size targets across K–12, new investments in K–12 social‑studies curriculum, two small classroom additions in the middle school, exterior door replacements for safety, repairs to the high‑school pool pit room, resurfacing and resealing of tennis courts and parking lots, and ongoing classroom technology replacements. Jonathan said about 94,000 is set aside in the budget for network switches, with about half of that funded through federal E‑rate reimbursements. He also noted the district manages roughly 300 security cameras districtwide and replaces about 30 per year to maintain equipment on a 10‑year cycle.

Special education was a focal point: the board budgeted $7,376,030 in special‑education expenditures and expects interfund transfers and other aid to cover roughly 40 percent of those costs in the current assumptions. Jonathan said the administration is advocating for higher special‑education reimbursement and has used a working assumption of about 60 percent reimbursement where possible. He cited a state legal development in framing revenue expectations: "We built in assumptions in terms of our revenue expectations of the $325 per student, which is in law, and that was just upheld by the state supreme court."

Board members pressed staff on contingency planning. One member asked about the district's fund balance, which Jonathan said would be roughly 14.4 percent under the preliminary plan; the board's stated policy target is 15 percent. "That's a goal to get the board back above that 15% level," Jonathan said, adding staff will continue to look for savings and cooperative arrangements with the village and neighboring districts to help rebuild reserves over time.

Next steps: the presentation is the board's first conversation on the preliminary budget. Staff said a public presentation and two additional board meetings are planned before the board votes on the preliminary budget and tax levy.