DOES SAGINAW ISD NEED ANOTHER 10 YEARS OF THE CTE MILLAGE?

[Shadowninja]

DOES SAGINAW ISD NEED ANOTHER 10 YEARS OF THE CTE MILLAGE?

Well.....

Lady Budgetdown opened the books expecting this to be a fairly simple question.

It wasn't. 🐇

A little while ago, I showed you what Saginaw ISD is asking voters to approve:

1 mill.

10 years.

About $7.08 million estimated in the first year.

Then I kept digging. Because knowing what taxpayers are being asked to pay is only half the equation.

Do they need it?

First, there was a rather large number sitting in the ledger.

At June 30, 2025, Saginaw ISD reported approximately $45.17 million in governmental fund balances.

Before anyone runs away with that number, put it back!! That is not $45 million sitting around available for CTE.

Approximately $8.73 million was specifically restricted for Vocational Education/CTE.

So Lady Budgetdown followed that money.

And here's what I found:

📚 2022–23 CTE fund balance: about $11.06 million
📚 2023–24: about $10.80 million
📚 2024–25: about $8.73 million

That's important. The CTE reserve isn't growing. It's being spent down.

And there are some substantial expenses behind that spending.

SISD's 2024–25 Annual Services Report showed a $11.75 million Vocational Education budget.

Then in June 2026, the board approved a $2.87 million electrical upgrade at the Saginaw Career Complex.

So no, the books do not support saying SISD is simply collecting this millage and piling the money into savings.

But Lady Budgetdown found something else in the ledger. 👀

In July, the board considered spending up to:

$79,960

with Forthright Advising for:

"CTE millage renewal advising."

Yes.

There is an expense for advising on the renewal of the millage that funds CTE.

Into the ledger it goes. 🪶

So... does SISD need another 10 years?

The receipts don't give me a tidy little YES or NO.

They show an ISD with a substantial CTE reserve, but one that has been declining. They show millions being spent on CTE programs and facilities. And they show an ISD asking voters to continue roughly $7 million a year in property-tax revenue for another decade.

That's why I don't think the right question is simply:

"Does SISD have money?"

Of course it does.

The better question for voters is:

How much does CTE actually need over the next 10 years, what will it be spent on, and does a full 1-mill renewal match that need?

That's a question worth answering before November.

Lady Budgetdown doesn't tell people how to vote.

I just open the books.

You decide what the receipts say. 📜

Sources:
• Saginaw ISD — Audited Financial Statements, year ended June 30, 2025
• Saginaw ISD — Audited Financial Statements, year ended June 30, 2024
• Saginaw ISD — Audited Financial Statements, year ended June 30, 2023
• Saginaw ISD — 2024–25 Annual Services Report
• Saginaw ISD Board of Education — June 22, 2026 meeting records
• Saginaw ISD Board of Education — July 27, 2026 meeting records
• Saginaw County Clerk — November 3, 2026 ballot/proposal information

#LadyBudgetdown #SaginawISD #CTE #SaginawCounty #SchoolFinance #TaxpayerDollars #FollowTheNumbers