- Omaha Public Schools faces a $50.6 million budget shortfall caused by a Nebraska Department of Education miscalculation tied to free and reduced-price lunch program funding.
- The district's proposed budget includes a property tax increase of about $1.05per $100 of taxable valuation to close the gap.
- District leaders have begun a series of public presentations to discuss the budget's impact on taxpayers, with more meetings still to come.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Omaha Public Schools is facing a $50.6 million budget shortfall for the upcoming school year after an error by the Nebraska Department of Education.
The shortfall stems from a miscalculation involving state and federal funding tied to the free and reduced-price lunch program, which resulted in the district receiving more funding than it should have.
To address the gap, the district's proposed budget includes a property tax increase of about \1.05per1.05per100 of taxable valuation. OPS Chief Financial Officer Shane Rhian says that in recent years, when the district received additional state funding, it lowered the property tax levy — but now it is time to go back to the higher levy.
District leaders held the first of a series of community presentations outside the OPS TAC Building to discuss the budget and its impact on taxpayers.
Rhian said the district did not want to raise taxes, but emphasized the importance of protecting students and the district's moonshot initiative, which aims to have all students reading on grade level by 2030.
"We know no one likes a tax increase. We did not want to do a tax increase," Rhian said.
"Our students will be the future teachers, nurses, firefighters, police officers, small business owners. Now is not the time for us to reduce the number of teachers or increase the number of students in classes that will only be detrimental to their education," Rhian said.
Neighbor John Sullivan, whose children attended Omaha Public Schools, said he appreciates the district's transparency and believes the conversations are important.
"Nobody likes a property tax increase, so I think that's the issue for all of us," Sullivan said.
"As a taxpayer here, and, like, many who are out there, we've got to find the right way to fund education in the state of Nebraska and in Omaha, so that we can meet the needs of everybody involved. The kids, the district and the taxpayers," Sullivan said.
Remaining community meetings are listed below
Thursday, July 23
6-7 p.m. Buena Vista High (5616 L Street)
Saturday, July 25
10-11 a.m. Burke High (12200 Burke Street)
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
