RIVER FALLS — The School District of River Falls’ 2026-27 preliminary budget was presented at the Aug. 17 school board meeting, showing a 5.44% increase to the levy from a year ago.

The presented numbers are preliminary, as the exact budget cannot be finalized until final aid and enrollment numbers come in during October. On Sept. 28, the budget will be presented to the community at Meyer Middle School during the district’s annual meeting.

The district levy is estimated at $28,713,747, 5.44% higher from the unaudited $27,232,242 from 2025-26. The 2025-26 number is 5.7% higher than the 2024-25 number. While the referendum debt service portion of the levy decreased from $7.06 million to $6.26 million, the General Fund portion increased from just shy of $20 million to $22.19 million.

General Fund revenues are estimated to increase by roughly $1.1 million to $50.32 million. The fund’s expenditures are slated to increase by just over $2 million to $50.32 million.

The budget features a decrease in combined state and federal aid that stacks up to around $860,000.

“We are looking at and estimating a decline in enrollment, which then, when we use that three-year average for our revenue limit, continues to bring that down,” Director of Finance and Facilities Lynette Coy said.

“What we have in here for estimates are really the increases in salaries and benefits. That’s our biggest driver, because it’s almost 80% of our budget,” Coy said.

Capital project expenditures are a significant change from a year ago, decreasing from $15 million in 2025-26 to $4.2 million in 2026-27. Capital project funds include both referendum work as well as summer general capital projects. The remaining referendum funds must be spent prior to the conclusion of the 2026-27 fiscal year.

Other business

• The district was awarded a $14,000 grant for the high school welding program to help expand opportunities and the purchase of industrial welding tables and tungsten sharpeners from Donaldson Filtration Solutions. The district was also awarded a $10,000 grant from the St. Croix Valley Foundation toward the school forest. The focus with the money will be to create specific field trips for elementary students, enhance trail signage and strengthen habitats and outdoor learning spaces. The American Legion awarded the district $1,000 to help students have equal opportunities in activities and athletics.
• The district is in the early stages of updating the strategic plan, goals and action plan for 2028-33. A survey will be mailed throughout the community in October to gather input. Those results will be presented to the school board in December. Joe Schroeder Consulting was selected by the board to facilitate the plan’s update.
• Approved updates to the district nurse and high school secretary job descriptions to meet current practice. The 2026-27 substitute teacher handbook was also approved.
• Approved agreements with UWRF for pre-schooling, Ellsworth and Prescott for the hearing-impaired program and Ellsworth for Project SEARCH.