Budgeting for fiscal year 2026 is underway, and the Kodiak Island Borough Assembly has put forward a balanced budget for the public to weigh in on next month.
The FY 2026 budget was introduced last week on May 15, with a deadline to be approved by June 10.
So far the borough is expecting its proposed expenses will not exceed its anticipated revenue for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins on July 1.
Borough Manager Aimee Williams said there are still some unknowns, like the amount of school bond debt reimbursement the borough will get from the state. During the Borough Assembly meeting on Thursday, Williams said the state may only fund 75% instead of the full amount.
“Last week I told you about the Senate Finance update of reducing school bond debt payments by 25%," she said to assembly members. "I spoke with our lobbyist, Mark Hickey, this morning about how the first committee meeting went. He was surprised the House didn’t have a lot to say about any changes that the Senate had made, and there was not a fight to get this paid.] Right now, in his opinion, it will go through at 75%.”
That equates to roughly $1 million less in funding from the state to reimburse the borough for bonds that paid for various school construction projects.
Adding uncertainty for school bond debt reimbursement is Governor Mike Dunleavy’s ability to issue line-item vetoes. The school construction debt reimbursement program is set to end on July 1 at the end of the current fiscal year, unless SB 184, which would extend it two years, is approved before the end of this legislative session.
On top of that, the Borough Assembly is considering giving the maximum amount of money it can to the Kodiak Island Borough School District as part of the local contribution set by state law.
The assembly will discuss the school district’s funding request of $12.9 million and finalize their contribution on May 29, according to Williams.
Other big ticket items on the current version of the borough’s budget include an additional $700,000 budgeted for the Kodiak Fisheries Research Center to account for the depreciation on the buildings.
The Borough Assembly is scheduled to finalize the fiscal year 2026 budget at its June 5 meeting, after a public hearing. The meeting is also set to also include certifying and levying property taxes.
