ALBUQUERQUE — The Albuquerque Public Schools Board of Education voted 4-2 Wednesday to approve a record $2.35 billion budget for the 2026–27 school year, a 4% spending increase that comes as the district’s enrollment continues a years-long decline and administrators project a $16.1 million deficit entering the new fiscal year.

The budget works out to roughly $36,859 per student — a figure first highlighted by Paul Gessing of the Rio Grande Foundation — based on the district’s enrollment of 63,726 students, itself down 20% from the 80,109 students enrolled before the pandemic in 2019, according to the Albuquerque Journal. APS officials project enrollment will slide further, to approximately 54,672 students by the 2029–30 school year.

To put that figure in context: APS’s per-pupil spending exceeds annual tuition at every major Albuquerque private school. Albuquerque Academy charges $30,118 for the 2026–27 school year, Bosque School charges $29,358, and Sandia Preparatory School charges $28,200 — all confirmed on each school’s website. At Hope Christian School, a PreK–12 campus serving more than 1,300 students, high school tuition runs approximately $10,748, according to third-party enrollment data. 

Despite shrinking student rolls, spending continues to climb. The district’s operational budget alone stands at $1.153 billion for the coming year — a 6.6% jump from the prior year’s $1.081 billion — with 92% of those funds earmarked for employee compensation and benefits. State lawmakers earlier this year mandated a 1% salary increase for school employees and required districts to cover 80% of employee health insurance costs, both of which are reflected in the new budget.

The district is set to receive $1.019 billion from the state Public Education Department through the state equalization guarantee formula, just over half of PED’s total funding pool distributed to all New Mexico public schools. APS is the state’s largest district.

The $2.35 billion total includes nearly $729 million in capital funds for school construction and renovation, roughly $208 million in debt service for bond repayments, and nearly $24 million for student transportation. Among the capital projects is a new special education facility on Albuquerque’s West Side, estimated to cost $15 million, funded through bonds.

To close its $16.1 million structural deficit, the district will draw from its reserve fund, which will drop from $73.9 million to $57.8 million — still above the minimum 5% operational reserve required by state law. The district will also cut approximately 290 full-time equivalent positions, though Superintendent Gabriella Blakey said layoffs are not expected, with reductions handled through attrition.

“Until the kindergarten numbers go up, we essentially will continue to decline in our enrollment — unless millions of people move to Albuquerque, which would be great,” Blakey said during Wednesday’s board meeting.

The budget now heads to the New Mexico Public Education Department for final approval.