District overview
Brentwood Union School District
Funding structure, how it compares to peers, and where major projects stand.
How is Brentwood Union School District funded?
Like most California school districts, Brentwood Union is funded mainly through the state's Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF): the state guarantees a per-student amount based on grade span, adjusted upward for low-income, English-learner, and foster youth students, and pays the district the difference between that guarantee and local property tax. That makes the district's revenue move with two things every year: how many students actually attend (funding follows Average Daily Attendance, not enrollment), and what the state sets as the annual cost-of-living adjustment.
Funding follows attendance, not enrollment
The district's own 2026-27 budget documents show enrollment of about 9,900 students but Average Daily Attendance of about 9,405 (95.19%) -- the district is paid on the lower ADA figure, so absenteeism has a direct revenue cost.
Enrollment is declining
District budget documents show enrollment falling from about 10,163 to about 9,900 students year over year, a roughly 2.6% drop. Because LCFF is paid per student, fewer students means less revenue even if per-student rates rise.
Nearly half of students qualify for supplemental funding
The district's Unduplicated Pupil Count -- low-income, English-learner, and foster/homeless students -- is 4,505, or roughly 45% of enrollment. That share drives extra Supplemental and Concentration grant funding on top of the base LCFF rate, money the LCAP is required to direct toward those students' needs.
State revenue growth is projected to slow and then reverse
The district's own multi-year projection estimates LCFF revenue reductions of roughly $3.97 million and $4.06 million in the two years following the 2026-27 budget, even before accounting for enrollment decline -- a structural funding headwind behind this year's staff reduction resolutions.
The district's 2026-27 proposed budget itself is not a deficit budget -- it projects total revenues of about $161.6 million against expenditures of about $157.9 million, a roughly $3.7 million surplus, and ended 2025-26 with a combined fund balance of about $13.4 million. The pressure shows up further out: the district's own multi-year projection shows its unrestricted reserve slipping from about 7.6% to about 6.4% by 2028-29, and the combined fund balance turning negative that same year if nothing changes.
Where the district stands
Down from about 10,163 the prior year, per the same budget document.
About 95.19% of enrollment; state funding is calculated on ADA, not total enrollment.
About 45% of enrollment; drives Supplemental and Concentration LCFF grant funding directed through the LCAP.
Against total expenditures of about $157.9 million, the same document projects a roughly $3.7 million surplus for 2026-27.
Calculated: $157,880,523 proposed 2026-27 General Fund expenditures divided by 9,900 enrollment. Not a district-reported figure, and excludes capital (bond) spending.
Down from a projected 7.57% the prior year in the same multi-year projection. The state-required minimum reserve for a district this size is about $4.7 million.
Covering a withdrawn $120 million facilities bond, two new board policies, a settled round of labor contracts, ongoing family safety concerns at one school, and school leadership changes -- out of 16 board meetings reviewed in the period.
Major projects
$120 million school-improvement bond (November 2026 ballot)
Withdrawn one week after approvalAfter more than a year of survey and planning work, the board voted 5-0 on July 15, 2026 to place a $120 million facilities bond -- covering roof replacement, safety and security upgrades, HVAC and plumbing renovation, and new classroom construction -- on the November 2026 ballot. One week later, on July 22, 2026, the board voted 5-0 to rescind that approval. The board's own record does not state why.
- Board reviews voter survey on feasibility of a 2026 bond measure
- Board adopts Resolution #2026-22, calling the bond election
- Board votes 5-0 to rescind Resolution #2026-22, withdrawing the bond
Funding
Would have been a voter-approved general obligation bond under Proposition 39 (55% approval threshold); withdrawn before reaching the ballot
Estimated tax impact, per the withdrawn resolution, was about $16.56 per $100,000 of assessed property value ($6.73 million annually) while bonds were outstanding.
Facilities Master Plan and ongoing capital projects
Ongoing -- several projects completed this year, more underwaySeparate from the withdrawn bond, the district is carrying out an updated Facilities Master Plan (approved July 15, 2026) funded through its existing Measure B bond and general fund capital budget. This year it completed shade-structure and flooring-replacement projects at several elementary schools and continued HVAC and plumbing upgrades at Bristow Middle School.
- Notices of completion approved for shade structures (Pioneer, Mary Casey Black) and flooring replacement (Brentwood, Loma Vista, Garin elementary schools)
- Board accepts completion of the Lone Tree School Site Project (Isaac R. Montanez Elementary)
- CalSHAPE plumbing program project completion approved
- Board approves the updated Facilities Master Plan
Funding
Measure B general obligation bond and district general fund capital budget
The board's 2024-25 Measure B Bond Building Fund Audit Report was approved February 11, 2026.
Recent news
Figures below are drawn from board-adopted budget documents, interim financial reports, and board meeting minutes collected from the district's own Documents center for the period September 2025 through August 2026. Figures marked verified are quoted or closely paraphrased from a specific stored document; figures marked context are calculations or external comparisons.
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