Liberty schools present $27.5M operating budget and first read of compensation plan; board hears $246.8M all-funds figure

Liberty Public Schools staff presented a preliminary FY27 budget overview and a first reading of a compensation recommendation that would fund vertical step and horizontal lane movement for staff.

Cindy Sullivan, presenting the district’s budget overview, said the district’s operating budget is preliminarily set at $27.5 million and the total all-funds budget at $246.8 million. The all-funds decrease—about 29.5% year over year—reflects the payoff of 2016 and 2018 bond refundings and the winding down of capital projects, Sullivan said. She stressed that salaries and benefits remain the primary drivers of operating costs, composing roughly 79% of the operating budget.

Sullivan described the operating-budget composition as approximately 60% salaries, 19% benefits, 12% purchased services and 9% supplies and materials. Certificated salaries were shown rising to about $124.8 million overall in the salary budget (a 1.7% increase from FY26), and the district’s retirement contribution rates were identified in the presentation: 14.5% for certificated staff (PSRS/retirement-related contributions) and 6.86% for non-certificated staff.

On revenue timing, Sullivan reported the district received $13.1 million from the county last week, of which about $12.4 million was attributable to senior tax credits, bringing the district’s collection rate to roughly 96.7% for the year; she also said a request for interest reimbursement from the county had been denied.

Superintendent and staff brought forward the Team Liberty compensation recommendation as a first read. The administration presented an estimated cost for funding the salary schedules (vertical steps, horizontal movement and extra days) as "2,742,428" in the materials presented at the meeting; the superintendent and finance staff emphasized that the figure is subject to revision as employee-cost projections are refined and as state revenue outcomes become clearer before final budget adoption in June. Board members and staff discussed the district’s fund-balance posture (noted in the meeting as approximately a 27% reserve) and the need to weigh competitiveness for attracting and retaining staff against the longer-term costs of permanent schedule increases.

Sullivan also reviewed capital and debt-service variance: with bond work and escrow payoffs concluding, FY27 capital and debt service totals are substantially lower than recent years, leaving primary capital work this year to smaller projects such as playground replacements, site renovations and scheduled roof/infra upgrades. The administration said the district will finalize the preliminary budget next month and bring the full proposed budget for board action in June.

The board did not vote on the compensation recommendation at this meeting; administration described the timeline for finalization, ongoing Team Liberty engagement, and contingencies tied to state revenue developments.