Burbank Unified votes to study redevelopment funds as board confronts $39M multi‑year deficit

Facing a projected multi‑year budget shortfall, the Burbank Unified School District board on Feb. 12 approved consultants to evaluate redevelopment pass‑through funds and state facility reimbursements as potential tools to stabilize the general fund.

The board unanimously authorized a study of RDA (redevelopment successor‑agency) pass‑through payments and related accounting that, if findings support it, could allow the district to use restricted facility pass‑through revenues to reimburse the general fund’s required routine restricted maintenance contribution. Consultant Dante Gumusio told trustees the district received around $2.3 million in restricted pass‑through payments in fiscal 2024‑25 and that fund balance in Fund 40 totaled about $20.9 million with roughly $14.3 million potentially available, pending a validation of restrictions. He said those pass‑throughs could grow as assessed values rise and estimated the district could realize tens of millions of dollars over the next 10–18 years if eligibility and statutory conditions are met.

Superintendent Jason Hasty and staff framed the item as a strategic option to buy time while the district pursues other revenue and expense adjustments. Trustees and the superintendent noted legal restrictions: redevelopment pass‑throughs originate from former RDA project areas and are generally limited to facilities, modernization and deferred maintenance; a careful findings‑based resolution would be required before any reimbursement would occur.

Separately, the board approved contracting with King Consulting to audit district capital projects and pursue state School Facilities Program reimbursements — a process staff said could recover reimbursement for eligible projects dating back to the late 1990s — and commissioned a developer‑fee study to ensure the district is charging allowable fees for new construction. Those contracts will be funded from restricted facilities or developer fee funds, not the general fund. Trustees also heard staff describe an upcoming FCMAT fiscal review that was triggered by the county’s designation of “lack of going concern” and will review budget assumptions, multi‑year projections, cash flow and internal controls.

The consultants’ work is intended to produce findings the board can use to weigh near‑term budget tradeoffs and the district’s options to meet deadlines for fiscal reporting.