Moore County Schools projects $0.4M–$0.8M shortfall for 2026–27 under reasonable assumptions

The Moore County Schools finance team laid out foundational budget assumptions for FY2026–27 at the board's Feb. 9 meeting, projecting fixed-cost increases—driven by retirement and insurance cost growth, step increases and charter school allocations—that exceed conservative revenue growth under current assumptions.

Assistant Superintendent for Budget & Finance presented the district's funding mix (state ~60%, local ~23%, federal ~8%, restricted/fund 8 ~3%) and said employer retirement and health costs have risen; hospitalization per-employee costs rose by roughly $1,500 since 2022 and the employer retirement match rose from about 22.89% to 24.67%. Using conservative county-growth projections (3% county appropriation), staff modeled fixed-cost increases (2% state salary scenario) that create a projected FY26–27 shortfall of about $428,000; a 3% state salary assumption increases that gap to roughly $603,000.

Staff emphasized the district begins budget cycles with recurring deficits and relies on assigned fund-balance appropriations to balance the budget; ongoing use of fund balance at recent rates would push the unassigned balance closer to the district's policy floor. Board members requested more granular, department-level budget execution reports (monthly/quarterly line-item monitoring) and asked staff to present expansion options or efficiencies in upcoming committee and 2-by-2 meetings. The board agreed to the calendar for public input (web portal opening in early March and a public comment period through mid-March) and to refine budget options in March–April before adopting the superintendent's recommended budget.