District outlines multi‑year budget pressures and offers a 3.1% COLA with insurance changes

District administrators presented a fiscal overview and an initial compensation/benefits offer as part of ongoing negotiations.

The district said declining enrollment and changes to weighted student counts have reduced funding; that ADMR declines and a poverty‑count correction together reduced the district’s weighted ADMR and funding for the 2026–27 projection, and that corrective reporting increased revenue by about $2 million earlier but the district still faces a multi‑million‑dollar gap for the next budget year. Finance staff said they expect to use one‑time reserves and Medicaid and other fund adjustments to blunt the shortfall while preserving priorities including reading and athletics.

On compensation the district proposed a 3.1% cost‑of‑living adjustment (COLA) for 2026–27 and said the number will be revisited if the April CPI‑U (released in May) is higher. The district also proposed keeping the current insurance base cap, adding an increased Health Savings Account (HSA) contribution for qualifying plan enrollees, and creating a joint employee benefits council (including the association president and classified employee members) to review plan design and enrollment choices.

District and association negotiators discussed comparables and the fiscal trade‑offs between salary increases and insurance generosity; the district emphasized total compensation and the cost of pooled plans that keep many employees at zero out‑of‑pocket.

Next steps: the district will provide underlying slides and salary schedules for review and the parties will continue bargaining on salary and insurance articles.