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Cabarrus County board adopts 2026-27 budget, asks county to place $300 million bond on November ballot
Summary
At its April 13 meeting the Cabarrus County Board of Education adopted a proposed 2026-27 operating and capital budget and approved a resolution requesting the county place a $300 million general obligation bond on the November 3 ballot to address school construction and deferred maintenance.
The Cabarrus County Board of Education on April 13 approved the district's proposed 2026-27 budget and voted to ask the county commissioners to place a $300 million bond referendum on the November ballot.
Phil Penn, presenting the budget, said the continuation request to the county is roughly $105.2 million under a lease scenario (a 3.52% increase from the prior year if a $5 million contingency is received) and noted a package of expansion requests totaling about $4 million for student-safety positions, curriculum adoption and IT security. Capital requests include two new school construction projects (just under $184 million), 31 deferred-maintenance projects (about $18 million) and equipment and vehicle needs; total funding requests across continuation, expansion and capital ranged in the presentation from about $316 million to roughly $320.8 million depending on whether district computers are leased or purchased.
"We started this process back on October 29th," Penn told the board, summarizing key budget drivers including salary estimates, utilities and transportation costs, and one-time and ongoing funding needs for a new K-8 math curriculum and additional student-support staff. He said a $5 million contingency included in county funding would materially lower the net percentage increase the district would request.
Board members moved and seconded the motion to adopt the proposed 2026-27 budget for submission to the county; the motion passed by voice vote. The motion to adopt the budget was made by Sam Treadaway and seconded by Pam Escobar.
The board also approved a resolution asking the Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners to place a $300 million general obligation bond on the November 3, 2026 ballot. The resolution cites the district's long-range capital plan and describes the amount as necessary to address immediate capital needs identified in the plan. The board voted in favor of the resolution and will send it to the county for placement on the ballot.
The budget presentation and bond resolution are the district's next step in a multi-stage process: the budget will be submitted to county officials and the bond request will require county approval for inclusion on the November ballot.
The board adopted the budget and approved the bond resolution at the April 13 business meeting; the county will determine final funding and the ballot process for the bond question.
