South Whidbey board reviews near-final F-195 budget; flags 28% insurance spike and enrollment uncertainty

At its June 23 meeting, the South Whidbey School Board received a near-final presentation of the district’s F-195 budget from Mr. Field, the official presenting the district’s budget work.

Mr. Field opened the presentation by noting, "This is the F-195 budget. That's what the state calls the annual spending budget for all the funds of the district," and walked trustees through the schedule that leads to a public budget hearing on July 8 and an adoption vote on July 9.

The presentation framed the budget as largely complete but stressed material pressures. Mr. Field said the state passed through a 2.6% inflationary adjustment (IPD), but local cost drivers are steeper: health insurance premiums for eligible employees rose, he said, from about $15,684 to $16,488 per person, and the district received late notice that premiums would rise roughly 28% year over year. He also identified enrollment uncertainty as a major variable that affects state apportionment and overall funding; the budget assumes a conservative basic-ed headcount of about 1,132 FTE.

Mr. Field described the revenue mix the board will rely on next year. State apportionment was shown as the largest share (about 57% of revenue), state special-purpose funding about 19%, and the local enrichment levy is projected to bring in about $3.88 million. He said the district budgets for a modest $500,000 capacity line on both revenue and expenditure sides to cover unexpected grants or needs.

On expenditures, Mr. Field ran spending through three standard lenses: program (regular instruction, special education, community services), object (salaries, benefits, supplies), and activity (teaching, support). He emphasized that employee salaries and benefits make up the majority of costs and that school staffing is the primary driver of the budget. He disclosed that state-paid MSOCs (material, supplies, operations costs) totaled roughly $1.7 million while the district budgeted nearly $2.9 million in MSOCs, meaning local levy funds will bridge approximately $1.2 million of that gap.

Trustees asked for clarifications during the presentation: one asked how much insurance increased and was told Mr. Field would confirm the exact dollar amount but that the percent increase was 28%. Mr. Field also described program-level changes: transitional or virtual ALE (SpokAm Virtual Academy) funding was reduced to better match historical utilization; bilingual/MLL staffing was slightly increased to match growing multilingual enrollment; and the district expects to implement special-education program-review recommendations phased over time.

The board and superintendent emphasized there are no planned program eliminations tied to the current budget proposal; instead, staff have right-sized some previously overbudgeted capacity lines and are building hiring capacity to respond quickly if enrollment grows. The presentation also covered capital projects, debt service, ASB cash-flow considerations (noting the high-school football field is out of commission this year), and the transportation vehicle fund’s ongoing replacement planning.

The board was told the F-195F four-year projection will hold enrollment flat for planning purposes and assume the 2.6% IPD for revenue growth, with targeted reductions in support services rather than in-classroom staffing if deeper cuts are required.

Next steps: the board will hold the formal budget hearing on July 8 and consider adoption on July 9; Mr. Field offered to provide follow-up details (exact insurance-dollar change and any grant outcomes) via email and at the next meeting.