Portland Public Schools outlines FY27 budget with proposed counselor cuts and $5.9M CIP noted

Portland Public Schools finance staff presented a working FY27 draft budget on Feb. 23, saying the district faces a roughly $4.1 million late cut in state funding that requires tradeoffs across personnel and program lines. Finance Director Lisa Beck told the committee the district is planning conservatively and balancing additions for equity and early‑childhood against proposed eliminations tied to enrollment shifts.

The draft adds $5.5 million in revenues and expenditures to bring early‑childhood special education for 4‑year‑olds into the district budget, with district staff saying they anticipate the state will fully fund that work. "We have budgeted 5 and a half million dollars for PPS taking on this responsibility, which we do anticipate will be a 100% funded by the state," Beck said. District leaders and the committee cautioned that details of state reimbursement are still being negotiated.

Why it matters: the district projects a $9.14 million net increase in expenditures under current assumptions, which Beck said would translate to an estimated 7.18% increase in the local tax levy to support schools absent other offsets. "With the decrease in state funding, increased salaries, benefits, and non‑personnel, it puts upward pressure on the tax rate," Beck said.

Key additions and reductions: officials highlighted new investments including an $80,000 equity audit, a $178,000 civil‑rights officer position, more support for curriculum and teacher development, and additional early‑childhood staffing (about $5.1 million of the $5.5 million budgeted is personnel). At the same time, the district proposes eliminating six currently vacant central‑office positions and seven vacant school‑based positions; it also lists proposed eliminations driven by enrollment change that would affect 4.5 teachers, one dedicated substitute and two guidance counselors.

Public comment and board concerns: multiple public speakers urged the committee to avoid counselor cuts. "I do not think any of our 3 high schools can weather a counselor cut without severe consequences," said Johanna Burton, a Portland Public Schools staff member and parent. Portland High Principal Sheila Jepsen warned enrollment is projected to change by only "about 2 students" and asked the board to consider cuts farthest from direct student services.

Staffing context and supports: Superintendent Skallon and staff provided a snapshot of counseling and climate positions at the high schools, saying Portland High has "4 and a half guidance counselors" and Deering has four guidance counselors and approximately 3.5 social workers; both schools also have climate‑support positions and grant‑funded services. Skallon said expanded MaineCare reimbursement enables external providers (Spurwink) to place clinicians in schools at reimbursement rates that do not appear as a district line item.

Fiscal buffers and other programs: Beck said the district plans to continue using fund balance to moderate tax impacts but cautioned against overreliance on reserves. Food service and Portland Adult Education budgets were discussed separately; food service projects higher revenues but rising costs, while Portland Adult Education faces a projected gap of about $594,000 due to reduced grant funding.

Next steps: the superintendent will present the recommended budget to the full board on March 10. Committee members requested more detailed staffing inventories (counseling, climate, social work) and clearer confirmation of which budgeted dollar amounts include salary and benefits; finance staff confirmed figures shown are full 'fully burdened' costs. The committee signaled the draft is for feedback and further refinement ahead of the March presentation.