City council committee hears request for $22.8 million supplemental for Boston Public Schools

The Boston City Council Committee on Ways and Means heard testimony May 27 on Docket 1031, a request to appropriate $22,845,672 to Boston Public Schools to cover projected operating deficits for the fiscal year that began July 1, 2025.

David Bloom, chief financial officer for Boston Public Schools, told the committee the request is intended to cover two principal overruns: a projected health‑insurance shortfall of $18,087,750 and higher utility spending of $4,757,922. "We are seeking a $22,800,000 supplemental appropriation from the city council to cover two of the areas outlined," Bloom said, adding that the district has identified roughly $26,000,000 in savings from pauses to central and school discretionary spending and about $6,000,000 in other cost‑management measures but remains with a substantial remaining overage.

Why it matters: The appropriation would allow BPS to close the immediate gap in its operating budget for the 2025–26 school year without cutting additional programmatic services midyear, but councilors pressed district officials for more precise figures on personnel impacts and building conditions.

Councilors questioned the drivers of the overruns and the district's plan to prevent recurrence. A committee member asked whether the district's baseline budgets or forecasting processes are structurally flawed; Bloom said the district failed to anticipate unusually large increases in health‑insurance premiums and a higher employee participation rate in BPS health plans (from about 70% to about 75%), and that BPS has revised its projections and vacancy‑rate assumptions for FY27. On utilities, Bloom attributed most of the increase to rate hikes and a colder winter that raised heating usage, and said the district is pursuing renewable projects through the Renew Boston Trust to reduce long‑term energy usage.

Several councilors pressed on facilities and personnel. "We can't accept that — you fix the AC system," Councilor Flynn said, recounting reports of classrooms at 90–97 degrees and asking for confirmation that students are not currently in overheated rooms. Bloom said the district is converting buildings from heat to air conditioning where needed and that he would obtain current temperature data for the council. On personnel, Bloom said the district expects to reduce positions in response to lower enrollment and program consolidations; he told the committee that none of the district's permanent staff (those with three or more years' service and on an excess list) will be laid off, but provisional educators and other staff without permanent status may not have contracts renewed. He said about 150 fewer paraprofessional positions are expected systemwide and that roughly half of reductions are tied to three school closures; the district committed to provide a fuller personnel breakdown over the summer.

Public testimony: Multiple public commenters, including youth organizers, urged councilors to protect youth employment programs and school supports. Devel Moore, a 17‑year‑old youth organizer at the Center for Teen Empowerment, told the committee that youth employment programs reduce long‑term inequality and urged the council not to shortchange preventative investments.

What happens next: Bloom confirmed the School Committee approved the appropriation request on May 6, 2026. Committee members noted that the full City Council must act — the council must vote by the end of June, and members referenced an intended vote scheduled for an upcoming Wednesday.

The hearing transcript shows the committee sought follow‑up data on building temperatures, a detailed utility and premium breakdown by plan, and a precise count of vacant positions and staff who will not be renewed; Bloom said the district will provide those materials to the committee.