The FY27 proposed budget totals $4.1 billion, focusing on a $178.4 million investment in staff compensation and collective bargaining while requesting a county transfer increase that is 48% less than last year's request.
Dr. Michelle Reid, superintendent of Fairfax County Public Schools, presented the fiscal year 2027 proposed budget to the School Board during its regular meeting on Jan. 22. Calling it a "needs-based" budget, Reid said the $4.1 billion proposal focuses on essentials to maintain excellence by reallocating existing funds and increasing efficiency rather than introducing new, unfunded programs.
The restrained approach follows a Sept. 16, 2025, meeting of the Board of Supervisors’ Budget Policy Committee, where County Executive Bryan Hill specifically requested that Reid submit a "budget of reality."
The proposal represents a 5% increase of $197 million over the previous year, bringing the total operating fund, including all state and federal revenue sources, from approximately $3.9 billion for FY 2026 to $4.1 billion for FY 2027. FCPS is requesting a $138.4 million transfer from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, a 5.1% increase in local funding.
Reid’s FY 2027 request is more modest than the FY 2026 cycle, when she requested a record-breaking 10.4% increase ($268.3 million) to fund the division’s first collective bargaining agreement.
Last year, the Board of Supervisors provided an increase of $118.6 million. The resulting $121 million shortfall forced the school system to renegotiate labor agreements and implement cuts to pay raises, textbook purchases, classroom monitors, and the central office budget. By comparison, Reid noted this year's request for new county funding is 48% lower than last year's.
While the FY 2027 request is smaller, the proposal aims to restore some of the special education and advanced academic positions that were cut last year to balance the budget.
The school division anticipates that the new meals tax may help close a projected $22 million revenue gap.
Reid said today’s young people are the “architects of tomorrow,” and the division is committed to equipping them to thrive in a world yet to be imagined. She said FCPS aims to give students not only the skills to adapt to change but also the skills to shape the world.
A primary focus of the budget is honoring FCPS’s collective bargaining agreements. The proposal includes about $163 million in compensation adjustments under the agreement with Fairfax Education Association and $17.7 million for recently ratified adjustments under Fairfax County Federation of Principals, Supervisors and Administrators.
Reid also noted expected savings of $2.3 million from benefit rate changes associated with a new benefits contract, helping offset rising healthcare and retirement costs. She said these investments have helped move FCPS from seventh to second among eight regional divisions for beginning teacher salaries in the master’s lane and supported staff retention rates above 90 percent for two consecutive years, exceeding prepandemic levels, which Reid noted is unusual in the current national context.
She said there are no new wish lists, only trade-offs. Departments were told that new resource requests were not accepted this year because there are no new resources, and that any new ideas were to be funded by reallocating existing money. Reid said the division needs to stop doing some things to start doing new things. Additionally, Reid said FCPS is moving to a structurally balanced budget, stepping away from one-time carryover funds that previously propped up the budget.
The budget addresses several multiyear commitments and staffing adjustments. The division will move hourly family liaisons to contracted positions with benefits. Funding will complete the build-out of athletic and fine arts stipends and continue the expansion of middle school sports. The proposal partially rolls back last year’s class size increase. The budget also fully funds elementary special education department chairs and Advanced Academic Resource Teacher positions.
Targeted investments include modest funding for K-12 robotics to improve equity and support for educator math credentialing. However, Reid said that if additional state or county funds arrive beyond current assumptions, the first priority will be to fully restore the complete class size and staffing model. Other secondary priorities for surplus funds include elementary STEM and inclusive Pre-K expansion, addressing the major maintenance backlog, professional and technical partnerships and apprenticeships, and possible expansion of world language programs.
In closing, Reid thanked the School Board “for supporting FCPS and helping us continue to not just be the heartbeat of our community, but also the economic engine Fairfax County.” The next step in the four-month process until the school board adopts the Final FY 2027 Approved Budget is a public hearing on the budget proposal. It is scheduled for Feb. 10.
FCPS FY 2027 Budget Calendar