(UPDATE) School District 60 assesses risks in preliminary $86m budget

Updated, June 4th, 3 p.m.: This story was updated to show the $86,380,946 was the total operating expenses.

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The latest preliminary budget meeting from School District 60 (SD 60) reviewed budget risks. 

The preliminary budget was presented during the May 5th SD 60 meeting at the Key Learning Center. 

SD 60’s secretary-treasurer Angela Telford said the final numbers still need to be refined further and will be available at the board’s next meeting in late May.

This preliminary 2025/2026 budget showed a total operating expenses of $86,380,946.

This is an increase of $246,726 from last year’s budget. 

Salaries for staff, including teachers, principals, support staff and others, totalled $59,369,863. 

Employee benefits, service, supplies and equipment amounted to $27,136,164.

In her presentation, Telford addressed budget risks, including inflation and supply chain disruptions due to tariffs. 

“Tariffs are something that we hear a lot about, but at the end of the day, the budget is budget … there is not a secret pot of tariff money we can use,” said Telford. 

The reserve summary showed a total operating surplus of $3,733,136, which is 2.97 per cent of annual operating expenses. 

SD 60 Superintendent Stephen Petrucci explained every district is required to have a reserve surplus between 2.5 to 3.5 per cent of its operating budget. 

“This is to make sure that there are contingency funds available for unforeseen circumstances,” said Petrucci. 

SD 60’s surplus has slightly declined compared to previous years; it reached $4,753,936, or 3.24 per cent of operating expenses in 2023.

This presentation was given again at a meeting seeking public input on the budget on May 6th. 

This comes after the Ministry of Education provided the district with $1.2 million in funds to upgrade Fort St. John schools.