Public testimony opportunities on CBJ fiscal assistance for JSD February 26 & March 4

The Juneau School District has been struggling with a current year $9.5 million structural deficit. In addition to cost saving measures and consolidation, a critical part of the strategy for JSD to become fiscally stable is financial assistance from the City and Borough of Juneau. This assistance comes from CBJ fund balance in the form of 3 ordinances: 1) a $4.1 million loan; 2) a one-time payment for the current year of $3.9 million; and a one-time payment of $1.6 million for next budget year. The Borough Assembly is working to pass these three ordinances by March 4 in order for the District to make its budget deadline for FY2025.

The public will be able to comment on all three of these ordinances at the Assembly Committee of the Whole worksession on Monday, February 26 at 6 p.m. and at the Regular Assembly Meeting on Monday, March 4 at 7 p.m.

You can comment by signing up at [email protected] by 4 p.m. on the day of the hearing to testify over Zoom; sending an email to [email protected]; or testifying in person at City Hall Assembly Chambers.

If you plan to watch the meeting remotely but do not intend to provide public testimony, you are encouraged to use the CBJ YouTube livestream. This will help ensure that the Zoom meeting has enough capacity for all those participating, given the high degree of interest on this topic.

Zoom information is available at juneau.org/calendar. Meeting agendas will be posted to juneau-ak.municodemeetings.com as soon as they are available.

Ordinance 2020-14(b)(AD) – $4.1M Loan to the JSD

Ordinance 2023-14(b)(AB) – $3.9M to the JSD for non-instructional costs in FY24

Ordinance 2023-01(b)(A) – $1.65M to the JSD for non-instructional costs in FY25