The Halton District School Board, which runs Burlington's public schools, spent about $7.4 million ($7,382,724) more than it took in last year. Staff are asking trustees to cover the gap from the board's reserves, money set aside from earlier years.
That's $0.3 million more than the $7.1 million deficit the board planned for in its approved budget. A staff report says the board used reserves to keep supporting students as enrolment fell.
The board's main surplus funds amount to about 3% of the money it gets from the province each year.
The accounting firm Deloitte LLP audited the financial statements and found the board followed all funding regulations for the year.
Burlington's trustees for the new term are Bika Diakoloukas (Wards 1 and 2) and Amy Collard (Ward 5), both acclaimed, and Xin Yi Zhang (Wards 3 and 6) and Dania Thurman (Ward 4), who won their races in the 2026 election.
Trustees consider the statements at their meeting on Thursday, Nov. 12. The board must send them to Ontario's Ministry of Education, which funds and oversees public schools, by Friday, Dec. 4.
