Guilford County Schools is still waiting on $5.3 million it says it needs to cover state-mandated teacher raises, and the county's top administrator just told commissioners not to give it to them. The district first made the request back in July, and it resurfaced this week as a newly passed statewide constitutional amendment complicates the county's own budget picture heading into next year.
County Manager Victor Isler advised commissioners against approving the funding, according to 88.5 WFDD. Isler cited concerns about the next fiscal year, pointing specifically to a newly approved constitutional amendment that will limit local governments' ability to raise property taxes. North Carolina voters approved that amendment requiring the General Assembly to enact caps on year-over-year property tax increases imposed by cities and counties, as reported by WBTV.
The shortfall traces back to the General Assembly's budget, which included an average 8% raise for teachers, with larger increases for newer hires, pushing the state's starting teacher salary to $48,000, according to EdNC. Those raises took effect for the 2026-27 fiscal year, but Guilford County Schools had budgeted a little under $8 million for them before lawmakers approved higher increases than expected, especially for beginning teachers. The raises are now expected to cost roughly $13 million to cover, per the same WFDD reporting from July.
A Budget Already Squeezed Before the Raises Hit
The county's own budget was already tighter than usual this year. Guilford County's revised spending plan followed Senate Bill 889, which imposed a moratorium on the 2026 property tax reappraisal and left the county with less revenue to work with, the county manager's office explained to Blue Ridge Public Radio in a report from BPR. As a result, commissioners reduced the proposed increase in school funding from $19 million down to $5.6 million.
Guilford County Schools had initially requested about $313.6 million in county operating funds, a $25 million increase over current-year funding, according to a report from FOX8. The approved budget instead gave the district $288.1 million, an increase of $5.6 million that included $3.8 million for general operations and $1.8 million for debt service. That gap between what the district asked for and what it received left the county budget without enough funding to cover the state-mandated raises, leaving the district with a deficit.
Cutting Bus Routes to Close the Gap
Guilford County Schools Chief Financial Officer Tyler Beck reiterated the $5.3 million funding request at a recent county commission meeting, and described some of the steps the district has already taken to manage without it. “We closed bus routes. We've done the non-transport zone,” Beck said, per the WFDD report. The district also increased class sizes as it reduced staffing in an effort to work toward a balanced budget, Beck said.
The $5.3 million figure reflects the projected gap between what the district budgeted for raises and what they're now expected to cost, a gap the Rhino Times also pegged at roughly $5.3 million in an August report tied to the same $13 million cost estimate. Separately, in a post on the district's website, the Guilford County Schools Board of Education described the $5.3 million as money that would be used to match salary increases for employees who are paid using local, or county, funds.
What Happens Next
Guilford County Schools officials are scheduled to present a budget update at their next meeting on November 10. The newly passed constitutional amendment is intended to require the legislature to enact a property-tax levy limit, according to the ratified bill filed with the North Carolina General Assembly, though the specifics of how that cap will be calculated have not yet been spelled out. For now, the $5.3 million request remains unresolved, with the county manager urging caution just as the district heads into another round of budget talks.
