Auditor: Englewood projects $3.9 million shortfall for 2025–26; fund balance and benefits spike cited

Andrew Parente, the district's auditor, told the Englewood Board of Education that the district's current projection for the 2025'26 fiscal year shows roughly $77.4 million in revenues against about $80.6 million in expenditures, leaving an expected shortfall of approximately $3.9 million.

Parente said the projection used district actuals through Nov. 30, 2025 and standard assumptions to project the remainder of the year. "We are projecting that the district is going to realize approximately 77.4 million in revenues" and that expenditures will total "about 80.6 million," he said. He added the district began the year with a $5.4 million fund balance and is now projected to end June 30, 2026 with roughly $1.48 million, of which about $379,000 would be unassigned.

The projection prompted detailed questions from board members. Rachel Haber, chair of the finance committee, framed the numbers in the budget process: the district's recurring revenues under a 2% tax increase scenario stand at about $78 million, while an early expense iteration ran to $97 million and a later working total was near $93 million. "Last year the budget was presented to the board for public discussion and for public comment on the deadline it was due and as a result the numbers there was a lot of questions about the numbers that we couldn't resolve," Haber said in explaining the committee's push for an earlier, dedicated budget meeting this spring. She recommended scheduling a full board budget session so members and members of the public can review assumptions and proposed cuts before a vote.

Board members and the auditor highlighted three major cost pressures: medical premiums, which Parente and members said are rising roughly 30'35% and represent a multi-million-dollar increase; higher utilities and energy costs; and a substantially reduced available fund balance after previous budgets drew down reserves. Parente cautioned that a common, but unpredictable, revenue in many New Jersey districts is extraordinary state aid tied to special education costs; districts typically apply in April–May and awards are announced late in the fiscal year. "Extraordinary aid is an unknown revenue for all school districts," he said.

Several trustees pressed for clarity about how much of the fund balance had been budgeted last year to balance operations. Parente confirmed that the district used about $2.78 million of fund balance to balance the 2025'26 budget, and that the projection reflects a larger-than-budgeted draw this year that widened the gap between budgeted and projected results.

What's next: the board's budget is due for public action later in March; state aid numbers are not final until mid-March. Finance leaders said they will seek a separate public meeting focused solely on the budget and urged the business administrator to supply updated scenarios once state aid guidance arrives.

The auditor's projection and the resulting public discussion were a dominant item on an otherwise broad agenda that included grants and school reports. The auditor's slide packet and assumptions were provided to board members; Parente noted management omitted footnote disclosures commonly included in full financial statements, saying the projection was prepared for the board and management and was not intended as an audit for outside users.

Ending: Board members asked for a follow-up session dedicated to the budget and for more detail on assumptions and line-item projections before voting. The board did not adopt a final budget at this meeting; administrators were asked to return updated information and to schedule a dedicated public budget discussion.