Fulton County Schools FY 2026 Budget Update: General Fund Key Insights

On April 24, 2025, Fulton County Schools (FCS) held its Board Meeting, which included updates on the FY 2026 Budget, specifically the General Fund.

Key updates from the session:

• Overall, expected revenues are down. FCS is facing a decrease in anticipated revenue for FY 2026 due to various factors, including enrollment declines, low milage rate, inflation, and increasing benefits costs.

• There is an expected spending gap. Currently, projections indicate a spending gap of $97,729,838 for FY 2026, with estimated expenditures of $1,475,171,002 exceeding the anticipated revenue of $1,377,441,164.

• Personnel and benefits are the most significant expenditures. Personnel services (58.07%) and employer benefits (26.49%) comprise 84.56% of general fund expenditures for FY 2026.

• Certain full-time positions have been eliminated. To meet revenue restraints, FCS has eliminated the positions of graduation coaches and media paraprofessionals from schools and various operations and academic positions from administration. Additionally, non-personnel positions will be reduced in the central office by 5% and in the schools by 1.71%.

• FCS will still offer competitive salaries and benefits. To retain its high-quality teachers and personnel, all FCS employees will receive a 2.5% salary increase plus a STEP increase if eligible.

• Special Education is also funded by the General Fund. Special Education is estimated to receive $215,935,854 in FY 2026 from the General Fund – the largest single revenue source for these services. Additionally, FCS is adding 201.64 full-time positions in Special Education. This notable increase in positions results from a shift in how these roles are categorized for funding purposes.

• The introduction of GLIDE. GLIDE is a long-term financial strategy that will help FCS reduce expenditures in upcoming fiscal years. In FY 2026, it is estimated that there will be a spending gap of $97,729,838. Under the GLIDE strategy, FCS hopes to reduce the spending gap to $68,190,572.