Elk Grove Unified School District approves $1.16B budget, projects shrinking deficit

The Elk Grove Unified School District Board of Trustees unanimously adopted a $1.16 billion budget June 17, with plans to reduce its deficit by more than 90% during the 2026-27 school year.

Read more Elk Grove Unified School District approves $1.16B budget, projects shrinking deficit

The fourth-largest school district in California is expected to end the 2026-27 school year with a $5.9 million deficit. Revenues are projected at $1.16 billion and expenditures at $1.17 billion. The district also expects to receive $323 million from other financing sources, according to Amari Watkins, the district’s chief financial officer.

The district previously projected a $57.9 million deficit in the general fund in the 2025-26 budget.

“The deficit spending in both years is from planned spending of unrestricted reserves and restricted one-time funds received in prior years,” Watkins said at a June 9 presentation of the budget.

Watkins said the budget reflects higher funding tied to increased average daily attendance and higher expenditures driven by inflation, pension costs and health insurance increases.

Nearly 96% of general fund revenue comes from the state of California, while the remainder comes from federal and local sources, according to Watkins.

“This is evidence of how highly dependent that we are on the strength of the state budget,” Watkins said.

About 80% of general fund expenditures go toward salaries and benefits, with the remaining 20% spent on books, supplies and other services, Watkins said.

The district expects to spend $444 million on certificated employees’ salaries, including $349.7 million for teachers, according to the budget. That represents an increase of about $500,000 from the previous school year.

The budget also allocates $169 million for classified employees’ salaries, about $4 million more than the previous school year.

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An estimated $46.3 million is allocated for books and supplies, roughly $18 million less than the previous school year.

Of total expenditures, 85% are spent directly on students through instruction and other services, Watkins said. Another 9% is allocated to facilities, while less than 6% covers administration and other costs.

Other funds beyond the general fund include charter school, adult education, child development, cafeteria, building, capital facilities and capital project funds.

Expenditures from those funds total $371.2 million, Watkins said, bringing the district’s total expenditures, including the general fund, to about $1.5 billion.

The board also unanimously approved the district’s local control and accountability plan, a roadmap for the district’s tools and services used to support the achievement of the district’s 64,000 students.

Ongoing initiatives will address attendance and ongoing chronic absenteeism, Watkins said.

Watkins said the district projected a 94% average daily attendance rate for the next school year and an additional 256 students enrolling in the district.

Two new schools are also planned to open next year – Cypress Grove Elementary School, located at 4189 Cypress Grove Drive in Rancho Cordova, and David W. Gordon Elementary School, located at 8140 Spoonwood Ave. in Elk Grove.

The Sacramento County Office of Education is expected to review and approve the budget before the state adopts its final budget in July. The district’s budget could change after the state budget is finalized, according to Watkins.

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