Chicago Public Schools' fiscal prospects hinge on state and feds

Fidelity reports:

The Chicago Board of Education votes next week on an $8.4 billion budget as the district tries to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic’s toll on academics and local, state, and federal funding.

The spending plan for the fiscal year that began July 1 is up from $7.84 billion in fiscal 2020. It includes a $6.9 billion operating budget, $758 million capital plan, and $711 million to fund debt service.

The junk-rated district will see some local-sourced revenue fall and the state did not fund a scheduled annual increase in aid, so the CPS plan banks on the federal government coming through with at least $343 million in a relief package that went nowhere in the GOP-controlled Senate.

That’s in addition to $206 million it received from the federal CARES Act signed March 27, of which $128 million will be used in fiscal 2021.

Schools officially open the day after Labor Day but without any students in them. The district, because of the coronavirus pandemic, will stick with virtual learning for its first quarter with the potential to move to an online/in-person hybrid instruction plan in late fall.

“We remain confident that we will receive additional funding” based on the congressional discussions and bipartisan support for school relief, CPS Chief Executive Officer Janice Jackson said on a call with reporters last week after the budget was unveiled.

$8.4 billion for 355,000 students sure is expensive.