Ontario SD 8C board adopts 2026–27 budget and weighs PERS bond option

The Ontario School District 8C Board of Directors on Wednesday approved the district’s 2026–27 budget and several accompanying resolutions while spending substantial time discussing the merits and risks of joining a pooled PERS bond ahead of an expiring general obligation bond.

The board voted to adopt the 2026–27 budget and to approve related resolutions on tax categorization and policy updates, actions that the chair announced and carried by voice vote. The session also included a finance report that outlined options for managing the district’s pension and debt obligations in the coming years.

The board’s finance presenter (identified in the record as a board member speaking on finance) said the district paid $3,000 to a third party working with OASBO to analyze the potential benefits of joining a pooled PERS bond. "Our current bond expires in 2028," the board member said, noting the consultant modeled low-, medium- and high-risk scenarios and estimated a low-case bond rate near 5.25 percent. "So we have two years," the speaker added, framing timing for potential action.

Why it matters: the PERS (Public Employees Retirement System) bond option would shift the district’s pension payments into a pooled instrument managed by PERS, which could lower the effective rate if PERS earns returns above the bond rate. Board members emphasized this is not a guaranteed saving and called it "a gamble" tied to market performance and future economic conditions.

Board members asked how a pooled PERS bond would handle losses. One board member asked whether a net negative outcome would require a lump-sum payout or staged payments; the finance speaker said districts typically have options including using reserves to cover shortfalls. The finance speaker also recommended engaging Piper Sandler to evaluate the district’s specific position before proceeding; no engagement letter had been signed but the speaker said they were inclined to seek a formal evaluation.

The meeting record also covered the district’s general obligation bond, which the finance presenter described as nearing expiration. "That bond is for 18.5 million," the presenter said when describing the principal owed and explained that next year’s combined payoff and interest obligations would be in the roughly $19.3 million range (figures discussed and clarified on the record). The speaker cautioned that some line items and exact totals were still being reconciled in the discussion.

The presenter explained an associated federal subsidy tied to the general obligation bond has been delayed in recent years, with last year’s payment arriving about a year late. The district has not yet received this year’s subsidy payment; the presenter said the board plans to impose the usual tax for this final year to ensure funds are available to meet debt obligations if the subsidy remains delayed. If the subsidy later arrives and produces an excess in the bond fund, the district could either apply the excess to future bond debt service or transfer it to the general fund for facility maintenance, the presenter said.

On motions and votes: the board approved the high school leadership institute and the 2026 summer school payroll by voice vote. The board moved, seconded and approved the 2026–27 budget and then opened and closed a public budget hearing; no public comments were offered during the hearing. The board separately approved Resolution 25-18 (adopting and appropriating the 2026–27 budget), Resolution 25-9 (imposing and categorizing taxes), and Resolution 25-20 (establishing EFB policy 25-26). The meeting record shows each motion was seconded and approved by the board via voice vote; detailed vote tallies by member name were not recorded in the transcript.

The board scheduled a July work session for Monday, July 27 at 1:00 p.m. Mountain Standard Time and approved a bundled second reading of multiple personnel and governance policies.

The meeting closed after miscellaneous future-agenda items and an adjournment motion was approved.

Key next steps: the board indicated it will seek a formal evaluation from Piper Sandler before deciding whether to pursue a pooled PERS bond and will continue standard tax imposition and debt-service planning while awaiting the delayed federal subsidy. The budget and resolutions adopted at the meeting are effective per the board’s action.

(Attributions: quotes and attributions in this article use the meeting’s speaker list and functional labels as recorded in the transcript: Chair; multiple board members; the board member speaking on finance.)