CVUSD warns of $20 million in budget cuts over next two years
THERMAL, Calif. (KESQ) - The Coachella Valley Unified School District (CVUSD) could face up to $20 million in additional budget cuts over the next two years, according to district leaders — even after making tens of millions of dollars in reductions last year.
Last year, the district approved $57 million in budget reductions, which included staffing layoffs and program adjustments. Julie Vigil, Assistant Superintendent of Business Services, said those cuts were primarily made to meet the district’s required 3% reserve balance, not to fully eliminate ongoing deficit spending.
Vigil explained that when cuts are considered, the district prioritizes protecting essential services that directly support students, while looking for efficiencies elsewhere.
“You always look back at where are your core functions within the district and that’s always going to be your number one priority... We’ve been looking at dual-language and we’ve been looking at our CTE programs and those types of things as well as individual expenditures within departments and seeing how we can make items more efficient.”
Julie Vigil, CVUSD Assistant Superintendent of Business Services
The proposed cuts come as the school board recently approved a pay increase of up to $2,000 per meeting for board members, a decision that has drawn criticism amid the district’s financial challenges. Vigil say the pay increase is tied to recent legislation aimed at addressing disparities in board member compensation across districts.
“I know the legislation the reason why they brought that forward is because there are many board members that sit on districts that only receive maybe 350 dollars a month and that is not equal to the time and effort that each one of those individuals put.”
Julie Vigil, CVUSD Assistant Superintendent of Business Services
Despite the controversy, Vigil emphasized that navigating the district’s financial challenges will require ongoing collaboration with the community.
The school board has until its first meeting in February to decide on the proposed budget reductions.
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