Special education, all funds
lunenburgbudgetproject.org — written by the Lunenburg Budget Project, an independent tool for residents. Not affiliated with the Town of Lunenburg, the School Committee or the school district. The data this page is computed from: /data/topics/sped-all-funds.json
Also under School budget, all funds
Special education spending passed its voted budget every year, and other funds paid the difference.
| General fund spent | Other funds spent | Voted, general fund | |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2023 | $4,408,786 | $1,055,922 | $4,662,293 |
| FY2024 | $4,776,402 | $1,065,546 | $4,815,494 |
| FY2025 | $5,246,122 | $973,939 | $6,004,687 |
| FY2026 | $6,261,648 | $773,361 | $6,209,427 |
Bars are spending, stacked by fund; the line is the general fund budget voted for the same accounts. FY2026 is not yet closed in this run.
1 · The facts
$4,662,293
voted, general fund, FY2023
$5,464,708
spent, every fund, FY2023
$6,209,427
voted, general fund, FY2026
$7,035,009
spent, every fund, FY2026
3
of 4 the general fund came in under its vote
$758,565
general fund under its vote, largest year
$52,221
general fund over its vote, FY2026
$773,361
paid by other funds, smallest year
$1,065,546
paid by other funds, largest year
19.3%
paid outside the general fund, FY2023
11.0%
paid outside the general fund, FY2026
—
whether the vote counted on other funds
not published
2 · What it shows
- 1
Every fund spent $7,035,009 on special education in FY2026, against $6,209,427 voted.
- 2
The general fund itself came in under its vote in 3 of 4 years; FY2026 ran $52,221 over.
- 3
Other funds paid $773,361 to $1,065,546 a year on top: the circuit breaker and grants.
- 4
Other funds paid 19.3% of it in FY2023 and 11.0% in FY2026.
Related
- Special education reserve →What a reserve would have had to cover, year by year
- Special education definition →Why our special education total differs from the state’s
- Circuit breaker →What the state reimburses for the costliest placements
- Circuit breaker account →What the circuit breaker account holds at each year end
| Voted, general fund | General fund spent | Circuit breaker | Grants | Every fund spent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Out-of-district tuition | $1,291,293 | $1,202,771 | $333,495 | $0 | $1,536,266 |
| Transportation | $565,734 | $633,291 | $0 | $0 | $633,291 |
| Contracted services and evaluations | $152,500 | $239,337 | $4,005 | $295,264 | $538,605 |
| Staff pay and benefits | $4,177,530 | $4,178,542 | $0 | $100,601 | $4,279,143 |
| Supplies, equipment and other | $22,371 | $7,707 | $0 | $39,997 | $47,704 |
| All of it | $6,209,427 | $6,261,648 | $337,499 | $435,862 | $7,035,009 |
Only the general fund has a vote; the circuit breaker and grants are spent without one. Spent includes what was still owed at the close. Grants are the IDEA and special education program improvement grants. FY2026 is not yet closed.
Sources
- Lunenburg Budget Project — munis-school-journal.csv (every school journal line, FY2023–FY2026, our redacted reading of the Town’s Report 1)
- Lunenburg Budget Project — munis-school-journal-accounts.csv (every school account, with the FY2026 figures the report prints)
- Town of Lunenburg — period-13 MUNIS spreadsheets, school general fund and special funds, FY2023–FY2026 (munis-school-ytd.csv), tied account by account
- Town of Lunenburg — how the journal reached us, and what was redacted