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Sto-Rox SD reports modest enrollment gains as budget preview limits tax increase to 1 mill
Summary
Sto-Rox SD officials said district enrollment rose year-over-year and previewed a balanced 2026-27 budget that may recommend a tax increase of no more than 1 mill; the district removed $329,000 in emergency plumbing repairs from a DCED grant application after learning of a $500,000 minimum caveat.
Nancy Hines, chief recovery officer for Sto-Rox SD, opened the meeting with monthly enrollment data and recovery updates, saying March 2026 enrollment was up 22 students compared with March 2025 and that the district's April total stood at 932, a net increase of 14 year-over-year.
"When you look at the numbers ... the enrollment is up," Hines said, framing the gains as central to the district's financial recovery and future eligibility to move from recovery into monitoring.
Scott Reed, the district's business office official, gave a brief preview of the proposed 2026-27 budget and said he will present a balanced budget for public display pending board action on May 21. "We anticipate ... the recommendation for [a] tax increase will be no more than 1 mill at the most," Reed said, adding the goal is to keep any increase below that threshold if possible.
Hines reiterated a standing condition of the recovery plan: if the district opts to raise taxes by less than the index, the chief recovery officer must endorse the change.
On capital and grant matters, staff discussed DCED guidance about emergency-repair grant caveats. Hines said the district was informed an emergency-repair application route typically carries a $500,000 minimum spending caveat; because the district's immediate plumbing work was smaller, the district withdrew those plumbing repairs from DCED grant consideration and will fully fund the project locally. Hines described the plumbing work as valued at about $329,000 and said the most urgent repairs are complete, with additional phases continuing through the summer.
The committee scheduled a detailed budget discussion for its May 27 meeting, at which Reed will present the proposed budget to the advisory committee before the board displays it for public review.
Next steps: Reed will deliver the final recommended budget to the board for a May 21 public display; the advisory committee will examine it in detail May 27.
