Baltimore City school board approves $1.87B budget
The Board of School Commissioners voted unanimously at Tuesday's meeting to approve the proposed $1.87 billion Baltimore City Public Schools budget for the 2026 fiscal year.
The budget proposal represents a 5% increase from the 2025 fiscal year's $1.78 billion budget, giving rise to concerns about its viability in the current economic climate and amid threats to funding at all levels from the Trump administration.
Mark Parker, councilmember for District 1 and vice-chair of the council's Education, Youth and Older Adults Committee, addressed the school board meeting Tuesday night, highlighting the uncertainty around the state and city budget caused by dire decisions being made in Washington.
'It's a significant task to pass a budget [these days],' Parker told the board.
One of the most consequential of these actions was the recission of federal grants to schools to aid in COVID-19 pandemic recovery, including $48 million in Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funding from Baltimore City Public Schools.
However, a federal judge blocked the Trump administration's efforts to revoke ESSER funds in 15 states, including Maryland. On Monday, state officials told schools to submit requests for ESSER reimbursements by the end of the day, which Baltimore schools did.
This may allow the city school system to recoup some of the ESSER funds that were poised to be lost to the Trump administration's cuts, according to a slide presentation at Tuesday's meeting.
The presentation also warned that even 'with a potentially positive outcome on this issue, significant and serious uncertainty remains about federal funding going forward, underscoring the need for prudence in our approach to FY26.'
Have a news tip? Contact Mathew Schumer at mschumer@baltsun.com, 443-890-7423 and on X as @mmmschumer.
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