Rockford Area Schools board adopts FY2627 preliminary budget with small surplus, preserves fund balance

The Rockford Area Schools Board of Education on June 15 unanimously approved the district—s FY2627 preliminary budget after a presentation from CFO Bridget Peterson.

Peterson told the board the budget is built on a projected enrollment of 1,485 students and four principal revenue streams: property taxes, state aids, federal revenues and local revenues. She said salary and benefits account for about 70% of the general fund and that state aid projections were modeled using a 2.69% general education assumption. "I pretty much got this budget to be balanced. I do show a small $4,421 profit budgeted," Peterson said during the presentation.

The budget documents included a projected FY27 ending fund balance of about $6.491 million, or roughly 17.14% of expenditures, with an unassigned fund balance near 16.4% (about $4 million). Peterson cautioned that some of the fund balance reductions are one-time and urged the board to preserve reserves for operating capital and long-term facility maintenance.

Board members asked clarifying questions about restricted versus assigned balances and a standing annual set-aside for future capital needs; Peterson said the district has been setting aside approximately $50,000 annually for future capital. The presentation also reiterated compliance with UFARS reporting guidelines used by Minnesota school finance officers.

After the discussion, Chris Morgan moved to adopt the preliminary FY2627 budget; Jamie Hilstrom seconded. The motion passed unanimously. The board plans additional discussion of FY28 projections as more data becomes available.

Next steps: the district will proceed with the preliminary budget as adopted and continue work on FY28 assumptions and longer-term capital planning during the coming fiscal cycle.