Elko County School District finance staff presented a December budget augmentation on Dec. 1 that uses audited FY25 results and lays out a set of immediate and medium‑term responses to a multi‑million‑dollar shortfall.

Cassie Dahlke (district finance lead) told trustees the district encountered a roughly $7 million revenue shortfall driven primarily by lower actual funded enrollment and the state’s People‑Centered Funding Plan (PCFP) true‑ups. Dahlke said the district’s first true‑up reported funded Average Daily Membership of roughly 8,982 students vs. the budgeted projection near 9,500, producing the majority of the variance.

Key figures and moves Dahlke presented:

• Ending fund balance (FY25 audited): $4.8 million (budgeted projection had been roughly $12.9 million).

• Revenue variance: roughly $7.3 million under budget for FY25 (PCFP adjustments and lower ADM were primary drivers).

• Transfers proposed for FY26: approximately $16.4 million from the general fund to other funds (including $7.5 million to special education and $5.2 million toward the self‑insurance fund in the preliminary augment plan).

Dahlke outlined near‑term measures implemented or proposed: a travel freeze for non‑mandated travel, a hiring freeze, capping substitute hours to avoid PERS eligibility thresholds, moving certain pre‑K positions to weighted funds where allowable, reclassifying some purchases to capital funds where legally permissible, and forming a district budget committee of staff, parents and representatives to develop prioritized tiered reductions.

Trustees and the superintendent sharply discussed structural options. Several trustees warned that personnel comprises more than 90% of the district budget and that meaningful savings likely will require difficult choices — reductions by attrition, class size changes, program consolidations, or, in the most extreme cases, school consolidations. Chair and trustees asked that recommendations be conservative and that the superintendent and staff return with detailed options and legal guidance.

What happens next: the board approved the December budget augment resolutions. District staff will convene a budget committee to review proposed reductions and will return to the board with prioritized recommendations and any required action (including possible school consolidations) before the next budgeting cycle.

Why it matters: the shortfall forces a district with a largely personnel‑driven budget to evaluate systemic changes in program delivery, staffing and facilities use. The augment and committee process will determine whether cuts are largely administrative or if they will affect schools, programs or staffing levels.