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What the district's 1‑mill referendum pays for — art, PE, music, safe schools and more
Summary
CFO clarified that the voter‑approved 1‑mill referendum funds are restricted and primarily pay full salaries for art, music, PE, media and vocational programs and fund safe‑schools resources; the district cannot reallocate referendum dollars for general salary increases beyond the ballot language.
CFO Rios Welsh reviewed the voter‑approved 1‑mill referendum (set to expire June 2027) and how its proceeds are used. The board emphasized that referendum funds are restricted by the ballot language and cannot be repurposed for general salary increases. "The new language... will not allow for us to use it for pay increases," the Chair summarized during discussion; Dr. Campbell clarified that the referendum does fund the full salaries of staff in programs such as art, music, PE and many career‑technical education positions, noting the referendum supports hundreds of positions across the district.
The CFO showed referendum revenue projections (~$44.8M local for FY26–27, plus beginning fund balance) and an FY26–27 projected referendum ending fund balance of about $18.1M. The board discussed public messaging and voter information ahead of the fall ballot, and reinforced that spending rules are driven by the ballot language and state law.
