Citing flat revenue, declining enrollment, and increased expenses, Colorado Springs School District 49 Superintendent Peter Hilts asked the board of education during last night’s meeting to declare a fiscal exigency in the district, which will allow for a reduction in programs and staff, including non-probationary, or tenured, teachers.
“Instead of our revenues keeping up with our expenses, our revenues have flattened – as our enrollment has essentially flattened over the last three years – while our expenses have continued to climb,” said Hilts. “In order to meet our required obligation to balance our budget, we had to take money out of our Fund B fund balance, which is sometimes colloquially called a reserve – our savings account. We had to take money out of that and put it into our main budget in order to balance revenue and expenses.”
In an email Hilts sent to staff the morning of the board meeting, he outlined his plan. “On the expense side, our plan is to reduce costs across every program, school, and function in the district,” Hilts wrote. “This reduction in program (RIP) will impact the size, quality, and production of every program. It would be unfair to reduce the workforce and expect to sustain production levels. We do not assume or expect that a smaller workforce can deliver the same quantity or variety of production. Every department and every school will have to identify any activities that are less mission-critical. Our plan to balance the budget will also include a second phase reduction in force (RIF) across every department and all schools. To enable leaders to be precise about programs and personnel, we will ask the Board to declare a fiscal exigency, which is legally required before we consider any reduction in our non-probationary teacher workforce. Although we project that tactic will be a small part of the overall plan, we are required to declare an exigency as step one of the process. Non-teacher, INR, and probationary positions will make up the majority of any personnel savings, but we want to be scrupulous about honoring our obligations to every workforce colleague.”
Hilts also noted in the email that the district will have to “generate revenue by increasing fees that we control, consolidating operations into fewer facilities so we can sell district properties as they increase in value, and potentially, pursuing additional support from our community through a ballot measure.”
District 49 asked voters for a $9.9 million mill levy override (MLO) in 2023 to support increased teacher pay, but the measure failed with only 41% of the vote. Hilts said cost-cutting measures will include freezing the current pay scale for the district. “We can move people within the existing [pay] schedule,” he said. “But to raise the entire schedule we would have to find an additional source of revenue that we don’t yet have.”
Hilts said should a successful MLO be approved by voters, teachers would be the first to benefit. “If we were to pass an MLO next November, our plan would be to make a raise to the salary schedules retroactive to the beginning of the fiscal year,” he said. “If we were able to secure additional community support, our workforce would be the immediate and first recipients of that support.”
D49 board member Deb Schmidt was doubtful of the chances for a successful MLO. “I do not believe you’re going to get a mill levy override with the way these times are and the voters that we have,” she said. “I’m not going to say don’t do it. But I’m just saying good luck.”
The D49 board voted 4-1, with Schmidt dissenting, to issue a declaration of fiscal exigency during the Jan. 8, 2026, board meeting. Hilts noted in his email to staff, “Our intent would be to inform all staff members affected by the plan no later than January 23, 2026.”
