Gresham-Barlow staff warn of $10M–$11.5M shortfall, outline possible cuts

Gresham-Barlow School District staff told the Budget Committee on March 19 that the district faces a structural shortfall and is preparing for roughly $10 million to $11.5 million in budget reductions for the coming year. Pete Bejarano, who led the Budget 101 presentation, said the figure represents about 5.5% of the general fund and noted the district reduced its 2025–26 budget by $8.1 million last year.

Bejarano emphasized the causes driving the gap: a decade-long enrollment decline that lowers state funding; PERS rate increases; and federal grant funding that has not kept pace with inflation. "As far as the size of budget reductions, they are looking between $10 million to 11.5 million," Bejarano said. He explained the district is below its board policy target for ending fund balance (projected about 6% versus an 8% policy target) and that one day of operating costs is roughly $710,000.

The presentation stressed that appropriations set the district's maximum legal spending and that the committee's decisions are at the function level (instruction, support, community service, facilities acquisition, transfers and contingency), not specific FTE commitments. Bejarano said solutions must be ongoing rather than one-time fixes and that, absent changes, the district will need to make substantial programmatic or staffing adjustments.

Next steps: staff will prepare a proposed budget for review at the April 29 Budget Committee meeting; if the committee approves a proposed appropriation it will be forwarded to the school board for adoption before the June 30 deadline.