The Board of Education of Los Lunas unanimously approved a $144,572,592 budget for the 2026-27 school year on Tuesday, marking a fiscally balanced plan with no layoffs that addresses one of the most persistent challenges facing New Mexico districts: decreasing student rolls coupled with rising costs.
Greeted with praise in the boardroom, the vote caps a long process that began in February. The budget is now heading to the New Mexico Public Education Department for final approval before July 1, the start of the fiscal year.
Superintendent Susan Chavez thanked her staff for what she saw as a year-long initiative rather than a last-minute rush. “This wasn’t just a ‘Let’s meet after spring break and figure out what needs to happen,’” she said. “It’s been almost the entire year.”
Financial bright spot
Chief Financial Officer Sandy Traczek presented the financial plan, highlighting an unexpected financial bright spot. The district lost 243 students, but the reduction of program units from 16,241 to 15,777, a higher state unit value, offset the loss. The initial unit value rose from $6,801 the previous year to $7,017.10, creating an increase in expected state equalization guarantee (SEG) revenue of roughly $602,331.
Last year’s revenue stood at about $110.5 million, while this year’s projection is $112.3 million, Traczek said. Even with the final unit value settling at $6,877.10, the district projects to close out the year with revenues near $111.7 million.
No layoffs
District leaders emphasized that the balanced budget was arrived at without layoffs. Instead, officials used voluntary turnover to eliminate positions. These positions include 10 general education teaching spots and several administrative and support roles. The number of administrators remains at 56.
“No employee that was employed by this district lost a position,” said board Vice President Sonya C’Moya, who recalled past budget cycles when layoffs created anxiety. Board member Michelle Osowski was more expressive: “Compared to the budget that I saw my first budget season, this rocks.”
The financial plan includes a mandatory 1 percent salary increase for employees and retains the 80-20 district-employee split on insurance premiums. But medical premiums are to increase 9.95 percent in October.
The enrollment decline reflects wider trends across the state. Chavez observed family relocations, transfers to virtual academies, and students dropped for chronic absenteeism as key factors. The district is monitoring disenrollments weekly and tracking pre-K through 12th-grade registration.
After the vote, the board unanimously accepted the district’s 2025 annual financial audit. The school received a clean, unmodified opinion from auditor Scott Ellison of the Jaramillo Accounting Group.
The auditors reported that three prior-year observations had been resolved and cited the district’s internal controls. A new accounting standard for accumulated leave liabilities required an $8 million accrual for accrued sick leave. Officials, however, stressed this was a reporting adjustment, not an immediate cash obligation.
The board members commended the thoroughness of the budget and audit overviews and voted 5-0 to approve the audit.