1. Pennsylvania is one of a handful of states that publish timely summaries of K-12 school budgets, and they just published their 2025/26 fiscal year data. Given that the state is the fifth largest in population with a healthy mix of district types this allows for interesting comparisons. For the analysis below we used the 760 districts that Pennsylvania disclosed for both the coming FY 26 year and the previous FY 25 year, which covers just over 95% of the districts in the state. Overall spending is increasing just over 5% for the coming year. Enrollment figures for this coming year have not been released; the previous year-over-year change for Pennsylvania was a 0.03% decline.
School budgets are typically presented in two different ways, by "function" and/or by "object." Function categories explain the purpose of the spending while object categories explain what the money is being spent on. For Pennsylvania, all the material "Object" line items increased year-over-year. Salaries increased 4.7% and benefits by 5.5%. Below is a year-over-year comparison by Object categories:
The chart below shows the ten function categories with the largest increases, as well as all the function categories that had declines going into next year. Regular Programs-Elem/Secondary increased by 4.7%, Special Programs-Elem/Secondary by 8% and Support Services by 10.2%:
2. In the coming days, Burbio is rolling out a dataset of RFPs, adding to our existing datasets of state grants, school board meeting minutes, strategic plans, bonds, budgets, superintendent turnover, and more. RFPs will be presented in a sortable dashboard with key information such as due date, RFP title, Bid ID, District name and NCES. We will be categorizing the RFPs, and clients will receive alerts when relevant RFPs appear. Below are some RFPs from a variety of categories that are due shortly:
- In the Construction category, Davenport Community School District, IA is looking to replace tennis courts at West High School.
- Also in Construction, Hamilton Southeastern Schools, IN is looking at a multi-site boiler replacement.
- In the Arts and Music category, Richardson ISD, TX is looking for classroom music supplies.
- In the STEM and CTE category, Oswego BOCES, NY is looking for a CDL Driving Simulator.
- In the Student Services category, Denver Public Schools, CO, is looking for a special education curriculum for students in center-based programs.
- In the Technology category, Fulton County Schools, GA, is looking for Two-Way Radios, Parts and Accessories.
- In the Tutoring category, Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, NC is looking for Strategic Tutoring Services.
- In the PreK category, the City School District of New Rochelle, NY, is looking for a provider of universal pre-kindergarten program services.
3. Burbio's Signals Tracker reads millions of pages of school district data to find specific signals and discussion points from districts. It scores the stage of district purchase intent and provides an AI summary of the discussion points, with links to the documents for further investigation. It can also be used to search for what we call, "Affirmative Signals," as in, "Is this district mentioning this policy issue?" This week we profile districts that are discussing the issue of vaping and vape detection:
- Norfolk Public Schools, NE, discussed an updated policy involving the use of handheld metal detectors by junior and senior high school principals. The detectors can also detect hidden vapes.
- Baldwinsville Central District, NY, had a board meeting that consisted of student letters addressing various issues in the district, such as eSports, school start times, and school food. One student "brought up concerns about vaping in school and asked about vape detectors, prompting leaders to explain available funding and ongoing research into appropriate solutions. . . "
- Similarly, in Kalamazoo Public Schools, MI, a student "presented about the growing use of vape products among teenagers and chronic absenteeism . . ."
- A recent Norwalk Public Schools, CT board meeting featured a discussion of policies regarding student substance abuse led by a local non-profit leader. The discussion included the role of vape detectors, designed to "clear the air, clear spaces." "BOE has discussed vape detectors, but funding is challenging," reported the school board chair. "We can’t afford (them) right now, but if we can get creative . . . "
- Duncanville ISD, TX, requests an exemption from the current requirement that all vaping-related offenses result in mandatory placement in the Discipline Alternative Education Program. "Before the 2023 policy change, districts retained local discretion in responding to vaping incidents," reported a school official. "Since that state-mandated, zero-tolerance approach took effect, both vaping violations and DAEP placements have increased by 47%, straining our campus resources . . ."