Gilroy Unified adopts 45-day budget revision after state funding changes

The Gilroy Unified School District Board of Education on Aug. 7 adopted a 45-day budget revision to reflect the state's enacted 2025 budget and changes that affect district revenues and cash flow. District staff told trustees the enacted budget yields a large Prop 98 shortfall relative to the statutory formula and creates timing deferrals that affect June apportionments.

Mr. Greg, the staff presenter, told the board that the state applied policy choices that leave districts with less funding than the statutory formula would have produced; he said the enacted budget reduced available Prop 98 funding by nearly $2 billion compared with the formula output. He warned trustees that cash-flow deferrals mean June payments will arrive later (noted as a July 2026 apportionment in projections), creating short-term timing pressure even where ongoing funding exists.

The presentation laid out how the district plans to use a mix of one-time and ongoing state funds. The board was told California allocated $1.7 billion statewide in one-time funds that districts could draw on if federal grant releases were delayed; Gilroy Unified staff said that combination of one-time and ongoing dollars helps sustain programs such as learning recovery grants and student support services for the 2025–26 year.

Trustees and staff highlighted a major upside in the enacted budget: the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELOP) funding now qualifies the district as Tier 1, increasing after-school funding. Staff said the net increase for after-school programs is about $3.5 million and that universal transitional kindergarten funding includes an add-on to support lower student-to-adult ratios in TK classrooms.

The board also reviewed enrollment assumptions used in the multi-year projection. Staff presented an opening‑day projection of roughly 10,100 students and reminded trustees that the official state CBEDS (October 1) count will determine the year's enrollment-based funding.

Trustees discussed contingency planning in the event federal grants had remained frozen earlier this summer; several praised the district's financial staff for building multi-year projections and a plan B while warning that ongoing structural funding shortfalls and deferrals remain a risk. The board approved the 45-day revision by roll call vote.

The board was told the district will present audited actuals and a more detailed interim report later in the fall, and the first formal interim financial report will follow in December.