Reed district projects $1.8-mil deficit on $33.2-mil budget

The Reed Union School District is projecting a $1.83-million deficit in fiscal 2026 as it provides 5% raises to its teachers and staff and plans to spend an extra $1.18 million to close a funding gap for the arts, library and technology programs partially funded by the Foundation for Reed Schools.

The district’s board of trustees voted unanimously at its June 10 meeting to approve the $33.15-million budget against $31.51 million in revenue for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, which begins July 1.

While the district is projecting slight increases in its major sources of revenue, property and parcel taxes, it’s not expecting that to be enough to keep pace with its expenditures next year and will dip into its reserves to make up the difference.

Chief Business Official Chris Kim said several factors are driving the projected deficit, including rising special-education costs, increased personnel costs and the funding gap between the $1.75 million raised by the foundation and the estimated $2.93-million cost of its sponsored programs.

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