Jeffco Public Schools Board of Education Packet Summary — 2026-07-24
Meeting: Retreat - Jul 24 2026
The Jeffco Public Schools Board of Education is scheduled to hold a retreat focused primarily on potential November 2026 mill levy measures, the district's financial outlook, capital maintenance needs, community polling, and possible ballot language. The agenda schedules the retreat from 8:30 a.m. to noon at the Jeffco Education Center in Golden, Colorado.
Key Items on the Agenda
Mill Levy and Ballot Planning
The retreat agenda calls for the board to review community partnership recommendations and polling results, examine financial scenarios, discuss advantages and disadvantages, and review ballot-language options with bond counsel, political advisors, and a polling strategist.
The packet analyzes four financial scenarios:
- No new mill levies are approved.
- Only a general-purpose mill levy override (MLO) is approved.
- Only a $60 million special-purpose mill levy is approved.
- Both a general-purpose MLO and the $60 million special-purpose levy are approved.
The financial presentation uses an updated estimate of approximately $73 million per year for the maximum general-purpose MLO, rather than the partnership's earlier $75 million recommendation. The packet attributes the change to lower enrollment and shifts in other school-finance variables.
The packet states that the Partnership for Fiscal Sustainability presented a recommendation to the Board on May 11, 2026, for a $135 million ballot initiative in November 2026. Updated district financial analysis models approximately $133 million from a $73 million general-purpose MLO combined with a $60 million special-purpose levy.
The retreat agenda also includes results from a second community poll and a scheduled review of ballot-language options.
Financial Scenarios
If No New Mill Levies Are Approved
The FY 2026-27 adopted budget assumes no new mill levies. The packet shows approximately $977 million in General Fund revenue, $991 million in expenditures and transfers, and a $13 million use of General Fund balance.
Without new levies or adjustments to existing plans, the packet projects that by June 2028 spendable reserves would decline to approximately:
- $62 million in the General Fund.
- $9 million in the Capital Reserve Fund.
For FY 2027-28, the packet describes a planning process to identify at least $53 million in reductions and deferrals if the levies fail. That consists of at least $18 million in General Fund expense reductions and $35 million in additional capital-maintenance deferrals.
Potential General Fund changes identified for planning include reduced workday calendars or salaries, changes to benefit programs, staffing reductions, and consideration of additional school closures. These are presented as potential structural changes rather than actions being taken at this retreat.
General-Purpose MLO Scenario
The packet estimates that approximately $73 million per year would currently maximize Jeffco's general-purpose mill levy override authority.
An illustrative allocation says that, if $73 million is collected:
- About $15 million, or roughly 20%, could support compensation increases already awarded to district staff.
- About $39.5 million, or roughly 54%, could support future compensation increases.
- The combined-levy analysis also identifies approximately $10 million for career and technical education.
- A charter-school share is estimated at approximately $8 million in the combined scenario.
The packet says general-purpose MLO revenue could eliminate the budgeted FY27 use of General Fund reserves. However, without dedicated new capital funding, the district would likely increase transfers for capital needs, reducing the amount available for other General Fund purposes.
Special-Purpose Mill Levy Scenario
The packet models a $60 million special-purpose levy for capital-related needs. Its illustrative allocation is approximately:
- $7 million for the charter-school share.
- $53 million for the district share, supporting capital maintenance, facility improvements, and building systems and infrastructure.
If only the special-purpose levy passes, the packet says the district would still need at least $18 million in General Fund expense reductions for FY28. Potential reductions could affect salaries, benefits, positions, or services and could be facilitated through school consolidation.
Combined Levy Scenario
The updated financial model analyzes approximately $133 million from both measures: roughly $73 million from the general-purpose MLO and $60 million from the special-purpose levy.
The packet's illustrative allocation identifies:
- About $8 million as the charter share of the general-purpose MLO.
- About $15 million for FY 2026-27 compensation and benefit increases.
- About $39 million for FY 2027-28 compensation and benefit increases.
- About $10 million for career and technical education.
- About $7 million as the charter share of the special-purpose levy.
- About $53 million from the special-purpose levy for district capital maintenance, facility improvements, and building systems and infrastructure.
The packet notes that approximately $133 million being available through the two levies would not mean the full amount would be collected by Jeffco itself because of the allocations described in the materials.
Capital and Facility Needs
Deferred Maintenance
The district reports investing about $108 million annually to maintain facilities, compared with an industry benchmark of about $110 million annually. The packet says investment below the needed level increases deferred maintenance and associated risks.
Priority needs identified in the packet include:
- Replacement of equipment using R22 refrigerant at 96 school buildings.
- Cooling systems, including air-handling units, rooftop units, and chillers beyond their service lives.
- Sewer and water main lines beyond their service lives.
- Code-compliance and life-safety work involving elevators and fire protection.
- Roof replacements.
- Safety and security infrastructure upgrades.
The packet provides examples of deferred projects leading to repeated emergency repairs, disruptions, accessibility problems, and security concerns. One HVAC example states that disruption from an aging system resulted in a two-day delay to the start of a school year.
Capital Prioritization
The district says its Strategic Capital Master Plan and associated tools use facility-condition and lifecycle data, maintenance requests, energy use, and lived experience to help prioritize investments and forecast future needs.
If no new levies are approved, the financial presentation says the district is already deferring $44 million in capital work and would need an additional $35 million in deferrals. If only the general-purpose MLO passes, the packet describes a combined potential deferral of $79 million in needed annual capital maintenance and investment.
Proposed Ballot Language
The packet includes draft/sample ballot language for two potential measures.
General-Purpose MLO
The sample language describes a $73 million tax increase in 2026 for collection beginning in 2027, with subsequent collections subject to the statutory district limit. Proposed uses include:
- Raising salaries and staffing levels closer to market averages for teachers, education support professionals, support staff, and school leaders.
- Expanding career and technical education programs to provide instruction, skills, and hands-on learning for college and workplace preparation.
The sample language provides for review of spending by the Mill Levy Override Committee and an annually released public report.
Special-Purpose Mill Levy
The sample language describes a $60 million tax increase in 2026 for collection beginning in 2027 and annually thereafter, with potential inflation adjustments after the first full fiscal year.
Proposed uses include:
- HVAC and climate-control improvements.
- Roof, plumbing, and parking-lot maintenance.
- Asbestos abatement and mitigation.
- Clean and safe drinking water.
- Secure access, monitoring, and other safety investments.
- Replacement and updating of aging infrastructure and technology.
The sample language likewise provides for Mill Levy Override Committee review and annual public reporting.
Timing and Budget Implications
If voters approve additional mills in November 2026, the packet says they would be certified in December 2026 and levied as part of 2027 property taxes. The district would begin receiving cash disbursements in March 2027, continuing through August 2027.
The packet identifies FY 2027-28 as the first full fiscal year in which the district could budget and plan in advance to expend the new revenue.
The packet also references a Board-approved June 11, 2026 resolution authorizing FY27 use of fund balance and outlining cost reductions if additional revenue does not materialize. That June action is presented as a previously completed Board action, not an action proposed for this retreat.
What to Watch at the Retreat
The packet frames the July 24 retreat as a working session for evaluating alternatives rather than documenting a final ballot decision. Key points scheduled for board review include:
- How updated financial estimates affect the earlier $135 million partnership recommendation.
- Results of the second community poll.
- The tradeoffs among no new levies, a general-purpose levy alone, a special-purpose levy alone, and a combined approach.
- The balance between compensation, educational programming, capital maintenance, and preservation of district reserves.
- Potential consequences for FY28 spending and deferred maintenance under scenarios in which one or both measures fail.
- Ballot-language options reviewed with bond counsel, political advisors, and a polling strategist.
The official public-body source used for this packet was the Jeffco Public Schools Board of Education meeting materials for Retreat - Jul 24 2026.
Official Meeting Source URL:
https://jeffcopublicschools.community.diligentoneplatform.com/Portal/MeetingInformation.aspx?Org=Cal&id=776
Public body's meeting/document listing page:
https://jeffcopublicschools.community.diligentoneplatform.com/Portal/MeetingSchedule.aspx
Provider: diligent-community
Provider Meeting ID: 776
Civic Translator summarized publicly available meeting materials.
