In an effort to balance its annual budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year, the D-49 Board of Education approved a statement of fiscal exigency, which will result in programming and staffing cuts, during its regular meeting Jan. 16.

The exigency will lead to a reduction of approximately $1.8 million in teacher salaries and benefits for the 2026-2027 budget year and will apply only to nonprobationary teachers.

The action comes after the board was informed by district leadership in November about revenue expense forecasts that fell short of what they anticipated.

In a presentation to the board, Superintendent Peter Hilts said that declining student enrollment, the defunding of the state mill levy equalization and the new school finance act have negatively affected the district’s revenue, while inflation, health care charges and current compensation commitments have increased its expenses over the past two school years.

D-49’s student count of 26,423 for the 2025-26 school year marked the first decline in the past five years.

To balance the budget for the current school year, the district reportedly applied $8 million from its fund balance, which district leadership said isn’t sustainable going forward.

In the packet presented to the board, these reductions would include 110 positions.

Hilts explained that declaring the fiscal exigency was necessary to avoid future budget shortfalls and that, since 83% of district spending goes toward its personnel, cuts were inevitable.

He added that informing affected staff now of the incoming cuts would allow them time to plan for applying for other positions following the school year.

“The people whose names would be on that list deserve to know sooner than later,” he said.

The plan follows a previous school year that saw reductions in administrative staff, supplemental programs and staffing and contract renegotiations.

Ahead of the board’s vote, Hilts shared a breakdown of recent reductions made across the districts that included 95 positions and totaled $9 million in savings.

Some teachers have expressed frustration with recent cuts they’ve experienced and the possibility of future cuts and questioned their handling of existing district dollars.

During the meeting’s public comment portion, Sand Creek High School social studies teacher Jordan Martin questioned the timing of the vote, the information that had been made public up to that point, and whether staffing cuts were truly the best solution to balance the budget.

“Voting ‘no’ today on this exigency plan allows you to take a step back (and) ask for a detailed plan,” he told the board. “Not vague references to programs and make sure that, if this emergency is truly required, there is a specific plan.”

Board member Mike Heil admitted to the fiscal situation being, in part, the result of the board’s recent investments in teacher compensation that hinged on positive funding trends going forward, which didn’t occur.

He added that these same compensations are not being affected by the exigency.

“What we’re doing here, this proposal, is more targeted,” he said. “It’s terrible. I don’t want to do it, but we’ve got $2 million in reserves and a $9 million funding gap and we are required to deliver a balanced budget.

“And so, this is the situation we’re faced with and we just have to deal with it.”

The board will now be presented with a list of staff subject to the exigency for approval at a future meeting.