Montgomery County Board hears FY2027 budget shortfall and proposed cuts that target 36M in recurring spending

The Montgomery County Board of Education on May 21 heard a detailed presentation from Superintendent Doctor Taylor and budget staff laying out a constrained FY2027 operating picture and a plan to reconcile a multi‑million dollar gap.

Taylor told the board the County Council’s appropriation left the district with $61 million less in available funds than the board asked for, but that a $25 million one‑time OPEB contribution narrows the recurring expenditure reduction the district must make this year to about $36 million. ‘‘The reality is that a lot of this work isn’t going to get done,’’ Taylor said, warning that personnel reductions or benefit changes would be the primary levers because nearly 90% of the operating budget pays salaries and benefits.

CFO Yvonne Alfonso Windsor outlined a reconciliation strategy that prioritizes classroom instruction and negotiated compensation while shifting cuts to central services, support services and targeted school‑based roles. The staff recommendation includes: a $4 million retirement incentive program intended to vacate positions gradually; reductions to central‑office and support roles (roughly $19.5 million across those layers); changes to pupil personnel worker and family‑engagement staffing models; and deferred implementation of several new elementary resource positions. Staff said about 294.7 FTE of school‑based positions are affected in the proposal but noted that many of those are currently vacant and the recommendation aims to preserve core instruction.

Board members and association leaders repeatedly pressed staff for line‑by‑line alternatives, asking which contracts could be paused or performed in‑house to preserve jobs. Association speakers — including Alicia Morales, a principal at Richard Montgomery High School, and Pia Morrison, president of SEIU Local 500 — urged the board to protect social workers, family engagement specialists, college and career navigators and other student‑facing staff, citing reductions’ likely impact on chronically absent and vulnerable students.

Staff also described an enrollment decline that reduces state revenue; the district peaked near 165,000 students in 2019 and staff projected roughly 155,000 for FY27, compounding fiscal pressure. Facilities staff separately told the board the County Council funded about 67% of the district’s six‑year capital request, fully funding the district’s top two major projects but delaying many elementary renovation and technology modernization items.

The board will take final action on the FY2027 operating budget on June 4. Staff provided a list of follow‑up requests by board members, including a more detailed breakdown of professional‑development contracts, the effect of specific reductions on special‑education services, and a clearer picture of which blueprint‑required services (for example, career advising) are contractually bound to external partners.

The superintendent and financial leaders emphasized the short‑term nature of some relief and a structural deficit the district must address in future years. ‘‘This is not a perfect budget,’’ Windsor said. ‘‘We are carrying a one‑time solution that creates a gap in FY28 unless permanent revenues or reductions are identified.’’

Next steps: staff will provide additional line‑item proposals and responses to board questions ahead of the June 4 final action.