Forest Grove budget proposal cuts $4.6M, up to 51 FTE; committee pauses to review

The Forest Grove School District budget committee heard a presentation on May 4 that laid out a plan to reduce district expenditures by $4,600,000 for the 2026–27 school year and to take additional steps that, together with last year’s reductions, total $6,600,000 in biennium savings.

Dr. West delivered the budget message, telling the committee the plan is grounded in four priorities—instructional excellence, student well‑being and belonging, family and community engagement, and organizational resilience. "Every child matters and deserves a great school," Dr. West said, framing the reductions as a difficult but necessary step to stabilize district finances.

Director Eileen Klute summarized the financial assumptions behind the proposal and walked committee members through the budget book. Klute said the proposal assumes an $11,400,000,000 state school‑fund base for the 2025–27 biennium, projects a 97‑student decline for next year, and builds in staffing reductions of about 68.8 FTE overall. She said the proposed general‑fund resources are about $92.7 million of new resources, with roughly 72% state and 22% local funding.

The administration told the committee the board authorized reductions of up to 51 full‑time‑equivalent positions: 27 licensed FTE, 21 classified FTE, 2 administrator FTE and 1 confidential FTE. "The board of directors authorized a reduction of up to 51 full time equivalent positions," Dr. West said, and staff described efforts to minimize layoffs through vacancy placements, transfers and early‑retirement incentives.

Committee members pressed staff for detail on class sizes, programs and contingency planning. Klute described class‑size targets embedded in the proposal—targets such as a 24:1 ratio for kindergarten through grade 4 and up to 30:1 at grades 5–6—and said the budget includes a single "pocket" FTE to respond to unexpected fall enrollment changes.

School‑meal funding and federal risks were a focus of discussion. Klute warned that proposed changes to Medicaid and SNAP eligibility could imperil the district’s Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) status, which now allows free meals for all students; "With those changes, we could lose our funding for free meals for all," she said. Klute added the district has one guaranteed year under the current cycle and is pursuing recertification to preserve CEP for up to four years.

Members also discussed a statewide administrative change: Senate Bill 141 (PBAM), the public‑budgeting chart‑of‑accounts reform. Staff said the change will require significant software updates, staff retraining, and reporting‑system rework; Klute said the district may need a temporary full‑time position to manage the conversion. Committee members characterized the bill as an unfunded mandate and discussed coordinating legislative advocacy.

After the presentation, a motion to approve the proposed budget as presented was made, seconded and then formally withdrawn as several committee members said they needed additional time to review the budget book. A subsequent motion to adjourn carried by voice vote so the committee can reconvene with more time for deliberation; the committee is scheduled to consider a recommendation for board adoption at the June 9 school board meeting.

The committee’s next steps are to review the posted budget document, submit questions to staff for clarification and return at the next scheduled budget‑committee meeting to deliberate further. Several members urged continued advocacy to the state legislature for relief from unfunded mandates and for funding changes that reflect the cost of education.

(Reporting based on the Forest Grove School District budget committee meeting transcript, May 4, 2026.)