On Tuesday, June 10, 2025, the Montgomery County Board of Education approved the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Operating Budget for Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS). This action affirms a shared commitment between the Board of Education and Superintendent Thomas W. Taylor to tackle existing challenges, establish and strengthen vital school support systems and prioritize a renewed focus on academic excellence through long-term strategic initiatives.

The $3.595 billion budget is an increased commitment to foundational investments, directly supporting schools, fostering student success and addressing structural deficits. The approved budget represents 98.4% of the requested budget, reflecting a $273.2 million (8.2%) investment increase over last year's budget. 

"Our priority throughout this budget process was to protect the classroom," said Superintendent Taylor. "We worked diligently to ensure that any necessary adjustments to the final budget would not impact direct classroom instruction or student services. We are grateful for the collaboration and partnership with the County Council, our Board of Education and our associations, all of whom share our unwavering commitment to the success of every MCPS student."

The adopted FY 2026 budget reflects a “Focus on Fundamentals” approach that strategically allocates resources to key areas, including:

• A strong commitment to meet current staffing guidelines for special education with the addition of 659 positions at an investment of $44 million.
• An investment in Emergent Multilingual Learners by adding 47 positions at an investment of $4.3 million.
• A commitment to competitive staff salaries, including employee wage adjustments, with an estimated increase of 3.25% to base salaries and step increases for eligible employees at an investment of $186 million. This estimate is on par with wage adjustments for county government employees. 
• An equity add-on to the formula that provides increased material resources to schools based on specific student populations by school determined by FARMs, special education and Emergent Multilingual Learners. At an investment of $2.48 million. 
• $30 million to keep the district on track in meeting the requirements of Maryland’s Blueprint for Education.
• To address concerns about school safety, the budget adds 45 positions at an investment of $2.8 million.

As agreed upon by the Montgomery County Council and MCPS, the district’s employee benefit fund for retirees will receive a total one-time investment of $50 million from its reserve, $25 million in both FY 2025 and FY 2026, to shore up underinvestment in previous years. For this reason, the MCPS request for FY 2026 represents a final request less that amount.

For more information and resources, please visit: https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/budget/

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