Committee of the Whole, Budget: May 28, 2025
The Committee of the Whole Budget Meeting for the Ottawa-Carleton District School took place on May 28, 2025. Staff brought forward 1 report for discussion.
Staff brought forward Report 25-035 on the Financial Sustainability Plan and Fiscal year Budget Landscape, posted on the day of the meeting, for discussion. This report outlines the financial challenges and the proposed Financial Sustainability Plan for the District. Due to underfunding by the Ministry of Education, especially related to centrally negotiated salary increases and retroactive pay from Bill 124, the District has been faced with a deficit budget year over year. The deficit was reduced in the fiscal year end for 2024 to 2025 from $8.7 million to $4.2 million through active staff interventions. Looking at the remaining budget season, the District is facing major financial challenges, including:
Moratorium on School Closures: Over 17,000 empty pupil spaces cost the District over $20 million annually without corresponding funding.
Statutory Benefits: Unfunded increases in employer costs areas like Enhanced Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) in a $10 million shortfall.
Inflation: Real inflationary impacts (~30–50% increases) exceed the 2% adjustment from the Ministry, creating a $12 million pressure.
Staff Replacement Costs: Budgeted at $31.5 million, with only $14.7 million funded, leaving a $16.8 million gap.
Temporary Accommodation (Portables): Funding gap of $2.2 million for portables due to delayed school builds
Special Education: $14 million over budget due to mandated service levels not matched by funding.
To address these financial challenges, in this upcoming budget year, the target areas will be looked at:
Central and administrative support: An estimate of $9,375,000 in savings.
Academic supports: An estimate of $4,850,000 in savings.
Special education supports: An estimate of $4,800,000 in savings.
In addition, a three-phase Financial Sustainability Plan is being proposed:
Immediate Actions: Freeze on non-essential spending, hiring controls, and reduced portable moves — expected to save $6 million.
Medium-Term Actions: Benchmarking, program evaluations, shared resources, and property divestment. Anticipated savings — expected to save $15 to 20 million over 2 years.
Long-Term Actions: Rebranding to promote strong programs and improved business practices to align spending with funding levels.
During the discussion, I asked the following questions:
Question (timestamp 34:21): Can you please expand on what kind of reductions we can expect to see in the central and administrative, academic, and special education supports?
Answer: Some of them have already been identified through academic staffing in various areas. We benchmarked across different schools and against the funding formula with different types of reductions. You will see more depth in the staff-recommended budget.
Question (timestamp 35:39): How much money is being spent because of board motions? For example: the summer learning program, the green bin program, and equity coaches. Is there a complete list of these motions?
Answer: This is a complex question because we are spending on a wide range of motions. We set aside money for the motions like the green bin program, but they did not necessarily hit the maximum spend due to problems rolling out the program. For motions like the Equity Coaches, those positions have a variety of funding streams that are not necessarily just through the District; some positions are funded through the Ministry of Education. If we did not spend that money on the equity coach positions, that money would go back to the Ministry of Education.
Question (timestamp 1:11:38): What are we expecting at the next budget meeting on June 10?
Answer: Staff may not be able to prepare a recommended budget for June 10. The reports and generated staff reports cannot be proposed for that day. There will be details on the reduction area.
The Board of Trustees expects the staff to propose a budget at the beginning to the middle of June and it is expected that budget reductions will be proposed to produce a balanced budget for the 2025 to 2026 school year.
Please note, that the opinions expressed here are entirely my own and do not reflect an official position of the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board or the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board of Trustees. Please note answers from staff are paraphrased, the recording can be found here if you would like to watch the entire meeting. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me using my contact form here.
Key links
Video for the Committee of the Whole Budget Meeting on May 28, 2025
Agenda for the Committee of the Whole Budget Meeting on May 28, 2025
Report 25-035, Financial Sustainability Plan and Fiscal Year 2025 to 2026 Budget Landscape
