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Board hears FY26 budget draft as reserves used to cover rising special‑education costs
Summary
At its Aug. 13 meeting, the Hinckley‑Big Rock Board received the FY26 tentative budget showing a drawdown of reserves to stay under new caps and a nearly $1 million increase in special‑education costs over two years; Title II funds are not yet included and a public budget hearing is scheduled for September.
At the Hinckley‑Big Rock CUSD 429 board meeting Aug. 13, Dr. Jessica Sonntag presented the district’s tentative FY26 budget and warned that special‑education costs have risen sharply.
"Special Education costs have increased significantly over the past two fiscal years, close to a million dollars," Sonntag said, and the administration plans to spend down operations and maintenance reserves this year to remain within newly legislated caps.
Sonntag told the board the district’s annual summary "landed exactly as projected" and that the audit is underway: "Our audit is currently underway, and we should have audited numbers coming soon." She also said the district moved from Tier 2 to Tier 3 in the state’s Evidence‑Based Funding formula, which reduces additional funding the district had received by roughly 23 percent.
The presentation noted that Title II funding was not yet allocated in the FY26 budget and is expected to be added during the budget hearing in September. Sonntag said the district would nonetheless finish the year with just over $10 million in reserves—about four times the minimum level called for in board policy—despite the planned use of those reserves for operations and maintenance needs.
The board did not take a final vote on the budget at the Aug. 13 meeting; a public budget hearing and further consideration are scheduled next month.
