Pleasant Hill SD 1 budget committee approves $32,029,643 proposed 2026–27 budget despite concerns about declining reserves

The Pleasant Hill SD 1 budget committee approved a proposed $32,029,643 budget for fiscal year 2026–27 after a multi-hour presentation, questions from committee members and public comment.

In a budget message and overview, Supervisor Jim Crist said the district built the proposal using “a very conservative planning lens” that prioritizes reserve protection and stability amid uncertain state and federal funding. “The proposed 2627 budget reflects planned expenditures that exceeds annual revenue requiring the district utilize a portion of its any fund balance,” Crist said during his presentation.

Sherry, the district’s business manager, presented line-item details and projected fund balances, saying the budget anticipates total revenues of about $14.5 million, total expenditures of about $14.9 million and an unappropriated ending fund balance that the presentation places at roughly 23.7 percent of operating expenses. “That does put our ending ending fund balance at 23.7%,” Sherry said.

Committee members pressed staff on several points: the committee was shown a projected near-term shortfall the presentation described as roughly $738,000 and staff said some of that amount is offset by one-time items and anticipated reimbursements tied to a capital project. Committee members also asked about the impact of a newly negotiated collective-bargaining agreement on ongoing staffing costs.

One committee member warned the new bargaining agreement could create long-term affordability risks, saying the move to pay some costs out of reserves was “a big red flag” and raised the risk of “permanently unsustainable staffing cost[s].” In response, Crist and staff described steps taken to restructure the salary schedule (shifting to a flatter 4 percent step structure) and said some incentive or one-time costs in the agreement are not expected to recur at the same level.

Public commenters and some committee members urged additional multi-year forecasting to verify the sustainability of the reserve trajectory, noting the district’s any-fund balance has declined from earlier high levels and that transfers to capital reserves for a reimbursable project affect how the year-to-year ending balance will appear.

At the meeting’s business motion, a committee member moved to approve the proposed 2026–27 budget in the amount stated at the meeting; the motion was seconded and the budget committee carried the motion. The chair also announced certification of property taxes for the 2026–27 fiscal year and the debt-service levy amount stated during the meeting. The committee approved the budget committee’s proposed totals for submission to the county for tax certification and the school board for final adoption.

What happens next: staff said the county will be asked to certify the ad valorem tax rate and the proposed budget materials will be forwarded to the school board as required next steps on the district’s budget calendar.

Sources and attributions: quotations and figures in this article are from the Pleasant Hill SD 1 budget committee meeting transcript for May 18, 2026. The article quotes Supervisor Jim Crist and Sherry (business manager), and attributes concerns and questions to committee members and public commenters as recorded in the meeting.