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Board approves FY27 proposed operating and desegregation budgets; public hearing flags short notice for desegregation materials
Summary
The board voted 5-0 to approve the proposed FY27 operating and capital budgets. During the public hearing members of the public raised concerns that the desegregation/unitary-status budget materials were posted with short public notice and argued the community should be given more time to review large attachments.
The Tucson Unified School District governing board approved the district’s proposed FY27 operating and capital budgets after a presentation from Chief Financial Officer Ricky Hernandez.
Hernandez described the budget’s main drivers: a 2% state increase to the base support level, the discontinuation of Prop 123 funding, a district-estimated 2% weighted-student-count decline, and voter-approved override allocations totaling $44.9 million that fund raises and program expansions (attendance initiative, counselors, CTE, fine arts, interventionists and a certified librarian pilot). The proposed M-limit (maintenance and operations) was presented at approximately $414.1 million and the unrestricted capital outlay limit at $20.4 million.
"The override allocations are the largest single line in the budget and were developed based on voter direction," CFO Ricky Hernandez said. The budget materials showed classroom spending was projected to increase and that administration spending would remain comparable to peer districts.
During the desegregation-budget public hearing, Lillian Fox and a written commentary from Sylvia Campo criticized how the unitary-status/desegregation attachments were posted on June 9 with limited public notice and said the public was not given reasonable time to review lengthy attachments. "Finding the public notification is challenging… the sham process to include community input results in little to no minimal input," the written comment read.
Hernandez told the board that auditor-general budget forms were delayed and that final budget forms would be issued shortly; the district will publish a full budget book after final forms and the annual financial report data are available and noted the timing reflected late state action on budgeting.
Board action and next steps: the board approved the proposed operating budget and will return on the July adoption date with required public hearings (including truth in taxation) and a revised budget using final state forms; staff said they expect to provide updated materials and a budget book by late July/November as forms and year-end accounting permit.
Votes at a glance: the FY27 proposed annual expenditure budget was approved 5-0.
What this means: the district will proceed with planning for implementation of override-funded initiatives and will present more detailed program- and capital-level decisions in follow-up meetings. Public commenters asked the board to improve posting notice and transparency for the desegregation budget documents.
