The Battle Ground School District is bracing for $14 million in staffing and program reductions in 2025-26 after voters twice rejected a replacement levy earlier this year.
During an Aug. 11 work session, Chief Financial Officer Michelle Scott told the school board that the levy’s failure will leave a $38.3 million funding gap over the next two years. Without a levy, projections show the ending fund balance turning negative by 2026-27 unless more than $20 million in additional cuts are made.
“This is a very, very challenging budget,” Scott said.
Initial estimates called for $20 million in cuts, but that number dropped to $14 million thanks to additional state funding and the use of 2% of the district’s fund balance over the next two years. The plan will reduce the unassigned portion of the fund balance to 4% by the end of the 2026-27 school year and preserve some staff and programs. Instead of ending the ASPIRE magnet program entirely, the district will only cut its third-grade cohort.
The positions cut include 56 certificated and 60 classified staff. The district will also use $5.2 million from its fund balance to help close next year’s shortfall. Staff make up somewhere above 80% of the district’s budget.
The 2025-26 reductions also include eliminating all middle school sports and coaching positions, ending free school supplies for primary students, cutting the Kindergarten Jump Start program, removing all instructional coaches and teacher librarians, reducing paid crossing guards, mental health therapists, and nursing positions, consolidating bus routes, and suspending new curriculum purchases.
Scott said unfunded mandates compound the district’s budget challenges, including a $5 million gap in special education funding and a $2.5 million shortfall in substitute costs.
“The new state taxes on fuel and services will add another $300,000 to $500,000 in costs,” she said.
Declining student enrollment, particularly in high schools, has cost the district $2.4 million in funding. Scott also stressed that Washington’s school funding formula, coupled with state budget reductions, is making it difficult for districts to cover costs. K-12 programs will see a $140 million reduction statewide, although some areas, such as special education and materials, will see targeted increases.
“Loss of levy funding for 26 will take years for the district to return programs that were reduced,” Scott said.
The district will have some capital funding to work with, thanks to a three-year capital projects levy set at 45 cents per $1,000 in assessed property value, which expires in 2027. Those dollars are dedicated to ongoing security improvements, repairing or replacing aging roofs and HVAC systems, upgrading technology, and creating or updating spaces for construction trades, culinary, and health sciences programs. The budget also includes impact fees from new housing developments and state grants for specific projects, such as culinary program upgrades and public safety infrastructure.
The board is scheduled to hold a public budget hearing and adopt the 2025-26 budget at 6 p.m. Aug. 25 at the Lewisville Campus, Room C-26, 406 NW Fifth Ave., Battle Ground. More information regarding the proposed cuts is available at battlegroundps.org/page/budget-cuts.
