SAGINAW ISD: LET'S OPEN THE LEDGER 📜
Lady Budgetdown usually looks at individual school districts.
An Intermediate School District is different. Money flows through it for special education, career and technical education, grants, services to local districts and other programs. So this isn't a traditional district workup.
It's a simpler question:
What does Saginaw ISD's financial picture look like?
📖 MONEY COMING IN
Governmental fund revenue:
2021: $85.29 millio
2025: $113.65 million
That's an increase of approximately $28.36 million, or 33.3%.
📖 MONEY GOING OUT
Governmental fund expenditures:
2021: $85.49 million
2025: $110.59 million
That's an increase of approximately $25.11 million, or 29.4%.
But there's an important distinction. Not every dollar flowing through an ISD is money being spent on the ISD itself.
In 2025, approximately $21.04 million was reported as intergovernmental payments, money going to other governmental and educational entities.
Context matters.
📖 GENERAL ADMINISTRATION
Now for a number that caught my attention.
2021: $637,901
2022: $941,477
2023: $1,583,903
2024: $1,271,286
2025: $1,551,468
From 2021 to 2025, General Administration increased approximately:
$913,567 - 143.2%.
Why did it increase that much?
I don't know.
Saginaw ISD provides centralized services that a traditional K–12 district does not, so this isn't an apples-to-apples comparison with your local school district.
But a 143% increase is significant enough to put on the ledger and ask what changed.
📖 THE FUND BALANCE
Governmental fund balance increased from approximately:
$20.27 million in 2021
to
$45.17 million in 2025.
No, that does not mean there is $45 million sitting in a checking account waiting to be spent.
Much of it is restricted or assigned for specific purposes, including approximately:
$8.73 million — Vocational Education
$4.31 million — Special Education
$27.82 million — Capital Projects
📖 NOW, THE AUDIT
This deserves attention.
Saginaw ISD's independent auditor reported a material weakness and material noncompliance related to budgetary controls in the FY2025 audit. And it wasn't the first year.
The finding is identified for:
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Seven consecutive fiscal years.
The 2025 audit says the previous finding remained uncorrected and identifies budget overages involving multiple funds. Saginaw ISD agreed with the finding and provided a corrective-action plan.
There's another accounting issue.
The auditors found certain subscription-based information technology arrangements had not been recorded under the applicable accounting standard.
As a result, among other effects, General Fund expenditures and other financing sources were understated by approximately $357,000.
Management considered the amounts immaterial to the financial statements overall, so the misstatements remained uncorrected.
That distinction matters: the auditors did not say $357,000 was missing or stolen. They said the accounting treatment was incorrect.
📖 AND ONE CURRENT EXPENDITURE
On July 27, 2026, the Saginaw ISD Board approved a proposal from Forthright Advising for:
CTE millage renewal advising, not to exceed $79,960.
With a CTE millage renewal before voters, that seems like a fair expenditure to put on the table.
Was that money well spent?
That's not for Lady Budgetdown to decide for you.
Neither is the millage.
Here's what the ledger says:
💰 Revenue increased 33.3% from 2021 to 2025.
💰 Expenditures increased 29.4%.
💰 General Administration increased 143.2%.
💰 Governmental fund balance reached $45.17 million, with most of it restricted or assigned.
An audit finding involving budgetary controls has appeared for seven consecutive fiscal years.
Approximately $357,000 in General Fund expenditures related to IT subscription arrangements were not properly recorded under the applicable accounting standard.
Up to $79,960 was approved for CTE millage-renewal advising.
Those are the numbers.
Some deserve context.
Some deserve questions.
And some may have perfectly reasonable explanations.
But taxpayers should be able to see all of them before deciding for themselves what they mean.
That's what opening the ledger is for.
With receipts and respect. 🪶
Saginaw ISD — FY2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR)
This is the source for the revenue, expenditures, General Administration, intergovernmental payments, and governmental fund-balance figures.
• Saginaw ISD — FY2025 Single Audit / Auditor Communication
This supports the seven-year material-weakness/material-noncompliance discussion and the IT subscription accounting issue.
• Saginaw ISD Board of Education — July 27, 2026 Special Meeting Agenda
This is the source for the board action approving Forthright Advising for CTE millage-renewal advising, not to exceed $79,960.
• Saginaw ISD — Financial/Audit Reports page
This is the district's own repository for its audit reports.