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Stockton Unified trustees review 2025–26 budget, special‑education local plan and LCAP update
Summary
Trustees heard a budget presentation projecting $498 million in revenues for 2025–26, a special‑education local plan that includes continued use of teletherapy where staffing is limited, and an LCAP update that adds learning‑recovery references and emphasizes transparency through new 'dex' expenditure codes.
Stockton Unified trustees on June 24 received briefings on the proposed 2025–26 budget, the district’s special‑education local plan and the Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) annual update.
Director of Fiscal Services Willy Gutierrez outlined the multi‑year budget projections and risks, citing market volatility, potential federal cuts and declining enrollment as concerns. For 2025–26, staff projected roughly $498 million in revenues and $393 million in expenditures, producing a net balance staff estimated at about $14 million; the presentation described a proposed $30 million flat reserve to bolster financial stability.
“Across the next few years there’s less revenues but more rising costs,” Gutierrez said, urging caution and explaining assumptions on COLA and TK staffing needs.
On special education, Executive Director Stephanie Reeves and colleagues reviewed the district’s local plan and annual service plan required by federal and state law. They described the continuum of services, recent use of teletherapy to fill temporary staffing gaps, and ongoing work to reduce disproportionate identification of students of color for certain special‑education categories. Reeves said in‑person services remain the priority and teletherapy is used as a staffing stopgap while the district continues to recruit in‑person specialists.
Tiffany Ashworth presented the district’s LCAP annual update, highlighting changes that add Learning Recovery Emergency Block Grant references to multiple actions and a revised short title for Goal 2 to emphasize a “whole child, whole family, whole community” approach. Trustees discussed steps to improve transparency and accountability; district staff said they are implementing a 'dex code' to map expenditures directly to specific goals and actions.
Board action on budget adoption and related items continued through the meeting as staff and trustees move from public hearings to required votes at subsequent meetings or agenda items.
