Hammond’s 2025 budget introduction warns of $15 million referendum loss and steep enrollment decline
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Summary
CFO Eric Kurtz told the School City of Hammond board on Oct. 1 that the expiration and voter rejection of an operating referendum will remove about $15 million a year in funding, and a roughly 640-student decline this year could cost the district about $5 million; the administration advertised the budget and opened a public hearing.
The School City of Hammond administration presented the district’s 2025 budget introduction and opened a public hearing on Oct. 1, warning trustees and the public that a voter-approved operating referendum will not be available next year and that sharp enrollment losses are reducing state tuition support.
Eric Kurtz, who led the presentation, said the operating referendum approved in 2017 was not renewed by voters in 2023 and that the referendum funding — about $15 million a year — will no longer be available. “Effective in 2025, we need to reduce our spending annually to the tune of over $15,000,000,” Kurtz said.
Kurtz said the education fund shows a reduction of about $5 million compared with 2024 levels; the operations fund appeared flat largely because some items funded by the referendum, such as transportation, must now be absorbed into operations. He noted the district receives just over $8,000 per student and that a decline of roughly 640 students represents a major revenue loss. “With these students K through 12, our enrollment now is under 10,000,” he said, calling the enrollment drop “the largest single loss... since 2016.”
The presenter reviewed the district’s three principal fund categories — education, operations and debt service — and described debt-service levy planning to ensure bond payments despite collection shortfalls. He said the advertised levy and budgets are maximums and that the adoption vote is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 22.
Kurtz also described two plans included in the budget process: a school-bus replacement plan (the administration has not budgeted funds for new buses but hopes to acquire vehicles via grants) and a capital projects plan based on a 2023 facility study by Schmidt Architects; both plans are largely unfunded. Kurtz told trustees the department will accept public comment through Friday, Oct. 11, and incorporate feedback before adoption.
Public commenters during the hearing pressed the board to lobby the state for funding, raised safety concerns tied to changes in transportation service and urged trustees to be transparent about how referendum dollars were used.
