Riverside Unified faces a $33.1M deficit heading into budget adoption

The Riverside Record: Riverside Unified School District trustees held a public hearing June 4 on a 2026-27 budget that runs a $33.1 million deficit. Director of business services Nickie Hoff said general fund expenditures should hit about $846 million, roughly $29 million above expected revenue, with another $3.8 million drawn from the ending balance to cover welfare settlements and the district's new office building.

About half the district's costs get covered by one-time restricted federal, state, and local grant funds; the rest goes to pre-committed expenses like deferred maintenance, technology replacement, and start-up costs for the planned Ofelia Valdez-Yeager Eastside Elementary School. Hoff called this the final year of deficit spending from unrestricted reserves and projected RUSD saves more than $1 million next year.

The district also expects state contributions once the budget closes, including cost-of-living adjustments, special education funding, and $32 million in grant money. Hoff flagged declining enrollment over the next three cycles as a future staffing risk, partly offset if special-education enrollment grows. The board adopts the budget June 25.