Wellesley Public Schools: Fiscal Year 2026 Budget
DBG Budget Adoption Authority
Authority for adoption of the final school budget lies with the citizens who comprise, and who are entitled to vote at, the Town Meeting. Town Meeting does not allocate School Committee appropriations among accounts or place any restriction on such appropriations. The school budget is presented as part of the total Town budget for action at the Annual Town Meeting. The School Committee recognizes the necessity of the School Department adjusting the annual budget in response to evolving teaching and learning needs. In order to provide appropriate support and oversight of these changes, the Committee must be kept abreast of significant adjustments in a timely manner. Each fall, the Department will bring forward an adjusted budget for the current fiscal year reflecting the changes since that budget was approved at the prior Annual Town Meeting and the Committee will vote to approve that adjusted budget. Additionally, throughout the year, the Superintendent will report to the Committee any other significant adjustments to and/or transfers within the budget. All appropriated funds not expended by the close of the fiscal year will be returned to the Town. Funds contained within specific accounts with designated purposes (e.g., Circuit Breaker, approved revolving accounts, etc.) are excluded, as allowed by law. use of Financial Reserves (Reserves) as part of its annual financial planning process. The Government Finance Officers’ Association (GFOA) recommends maintaining balances of Reserves in the amount of 5-15% of budgeted operating revenues. Reserves shall be maintained at a level sufficient to provide the required financial resources to: • Maintain top tier bond rating; • Ensure short-term cash availability when revenue is unavailable or there are unanticipated expenditures or emergency cash needs; • Minimize interest expense from short-term borrowing for operating budget needs; • Provide for investment income; provide for stable tax rates; and • Enhance planning for contingencies and long-term planning. Reserves shall be maintained in a range of 8 to 12% of the current period’s Budgeted Operating Revenues.
DBJ Budget Transfer Authority
Town of Wellesley Policies Financial Reserve Policy The Town desires to set out a policy for determining the appropriate level and
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