2027 Budget

Center Grove takes our role as stewards of your taxpayer dollars very seriously and is committed to financial transparency.

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Center Grove Schools Financial Highlights

Balanced budget
2026 Pay 2027 Certified Assessed Value $4,578,459,350 (-3.7% decrease)
2026 Pay 2027 Property Tax Rate $1.1044 per $100 of assessed value
Bond Rating AA+
Teacher Salary Range $52,000 - $95,713
Number of students: 9,617 (Fall 2026 ADM Estimate)
Number of employees: 1,632
Number of buildings: One high school, two middle schools, six elementary schools; 7 non-school buildings

School Funding in Indiana

The current budget structure was adopted by the state of Indiana for 2019 school budgets. That structure includes three major funds, as noted on the tabs on these pages: Education Fund, Operations Fund, and Debt Service Fund.
Center Grove does not have the 4th bucket, the Referendum Fund.
Each of these funds has its own set of rules controlling what they can be spent on, how much revenue will be received, how they can be changed, etc.
Each of these funds acts as if it were in its own “buckets” (see illustration). We have limited ability to move expenses or revenues between funds.

2027 BUDGET

INTRODUCTION

The budget will be voted on by the school board on October 29, 2026.
These budgets are all based on the calendar year: January 1, 2027 through December 31, 2027.
This adoption process is guided by rules established by the State Board of Accounts and the Department of Local Government Finance.

Activity Timeline

2027 BUDGET PREPARATION SCHEDULE

Scheduled	Actual
March 15, 2026	3/1	Submit ADM estimate to the State
April 15, 2026	4/15	First draft of staffing decisions made by Superintendent’s Cabinet and the Board
June 30, 2026	6/30	General Fund Revenue projections available
July 1, 2026	6/23	Business Office review of all budgets completed
July 6, 2026	7/6	First budget draft presented to Superintendent’s Cabinet
August 1, 2026	8/11	Auditor certifies pay-2026 Assessed Values
August 4, 2026	7/5	First day of school for students (original schedule)
August 20, 2026	8/21	Last review of budget with Cabinet and the Board
August 29, 2026	8/29	Budgets “closed” for further changes
Aug. 30, 2026	8/30	Budgets (spending plans) transferred into the Gateway system
Sept. 6, 2027	9/3	All state budget forms (draft) entered into Gateway system Final Form 3 Submitted through Gateway Post CPF Plan and Bus Plan on district website and through file transmission in Gateway
Sept. 17, 2026		Public hearing of the proposed 2026 Budget, Bus Replacement Plan, and Capital Project Fund Plan
Oct. 1, 2026		Official ADM Enrollment Count Day
October 29, 2026		Proposed 2026 Budget, Bus Replacement Plan, and Capital Asset Plan adopted by the Board
October 30, 2026		All final approved budget forms posted in Gateway
December 2026		DLGF provides 1782 draft notice
January 2027		Final 2025 budget received; Transfer Resolution approved by the Board
February 2, 2027		Second ADM enrollment count day

EDUCATION FUND

Purpose:
The Education Fund is used to fund expenses that are tied directly to academic achievement and student support. Expenses include teacher salaries and benefits, other classroom staff salaries and benefits, along with direct and indirect classroom expenditures.

Revenue Sources:
Most of the revenue in the Education Fund comes from the State, through the funding formula.

Property Tax Impact:
No property taxes are used for the Education Fund.

Budget Assumptions

BUDGET ASSUMPTIONS

Revenue Assumptions

Projected enrollment: Decrease by 30 students to 9,617
Special Education Projected Pupil Count: Increase count from the prior year
Vocational Education: Increase count from the prior year
Academic Honors Grant: Increase count from the prior year
Non-English Speaking Program: Increase count from the prior year
Summer School: Decrease in funding per student
Curricular Materials: Now included in the Education Fund

Total Funding as follows:

2026 Budget		2027 Budget
Basic Grant Funding:	$80,279,732	Basic Grant Funding:	$81,404,317
All Miscellaneous Revenues:	$148,578	All Miscellaneous Revenues:	$155,683
Transfer to Operations Fund:	-$11,990,000	Transfer to Operations Fund:	-$10,640,000
Total Education Fund:	$68,440,000	Total Education Fund:	$70,920,000

Expenditure Assumptions:

Salary Increase:

Administrators: 1.6%
Teachers: 1.85% (includes Teacher Retention Catch-Up)
Support staff: 1.6%

Staff Changes:

Administrators: No change
Teachers: 3 classroom teachers
Support staff: No change

Group Health Insurance:

5.0% increase in corporation premiums
1.50% increase in employee premiums

Total Expenses: $70,920,000

Tax Rate/Levy Assumptions:

This fund has no tax rate or levy. It is funded mostly by the state basic grant formula.

Revenue Estimate

Spending Plan

Cash Flow

Miscellaneous

OPERATIONS

OPERATIONS FUND

Purpose:
The Operations Fund covers equipment, maintenance, building construction and repairs, land acquisition, and professional service fees. This includes many maintenance contracts and the contract for our copier machines. We also pay more than a million dollars each year from this fund for utilities.

Additionally, the fund includes all previous uses of the Capital Projects, Transportation, and Bus Replacement Fund expenditures from the former General Fund, including salaries & benefits for the offices of the superintendent, business manager, human resources, custodial, and maintenance; insurance; and utilities.

Revenue Sources:
More than 99% of the revenue in this fund comes from property tax and other local taxes.

Budget Assumptions

BUDGET ASSUMPTIONS

Revenue Assumptions

Transfer: revenue will come partially from a transfer of $10,640,000 from the Education Fund
Miscellaneous Taxes: Excise taxes have increased as we move them from the Debt Service Fund.
Building Rental: revenue is projected to be about the same as the prior year
Total Revenue: estimated to be $23,670,000

Expenditure Assumptions

Staff changes: No change
Utilities: Decrease by $500,000 due to Guaranteed Energy Savings
Technology and Building Improvement Projects: Expenditures will be partly in CPF and partly in an additional bond issue of $8,100,000 for building projects and technology. More details on expenditures are in the list of CPF and maintenance projects.
Bus Plan:
- We have assumed 5% inflation in the cost of buses each year
- Replacement buses needed in 2027 are $1,640,300 to replace 8 buses: $191,500 each for 78-passenger buses and $108,300 for smaller buses
Gasoline: Increase by $50,000 for 2027

Total Expenditures

Estimated to be $23,670,000

Tax Rate/Levy Expenditures

Levy: This fund has a maximum levy that increases by a growth quotient every year. We estimate the maximum levy to be $15,451,879 for 2027.

Revenue Estimate

Spending Plan

Cash Flow

Miscellaneous

DEBT SERVICE

DEBT SERVICE FUND

Purpose:
The main purpose of the Debt Service Fund is to make payments on our long-term debt. This accounts for 100% of the expense in the Debt Service fund in 2027. In addition, this fund is used to pay for uncollected textbook rental fees and to pay interest on money we borrow to meet our short-term cash flow needs.

Revenue Sources:
100% of the revenue in this fund comes from property taxes.

Property Tax Impact:
There are no limits on the tax rate or levy, but each individual item in the budget for this fund must be approved by the Department of Local Government Finance (DLGF) on the Debt Service Worksheet submitted to the State. The tax rate tends to fluctuate from year to year. The amount of cash balance in this fund is also controlled by a state formula.

Budget Assumptions

BUDGET ASSUMPTIONS

Revenue Assumptions

The tax rate will be increased to provide funding needed to overcome the revenue lost to tax caps.
The state has developed a formula for determining what our year-end cash balance can be. We have shown this calculation on the Debt Service Worksheet.

Expenditure Assumptions

See DLGF worksheet
Addition of new bonds:
- 2026 G.O. Bonds ($8,200,000) to support CPF and technology projects
- Future Debt ($11,000,000) for the building and miscellaneous project

Tax Rate/Levy Assumptions

All funding comes from local sources.
The tax rate is computed on State Form 4. The levy will be whatever is required to raise the needed revenue.