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The Los Angeles Unified School District just adopted a belt-tightening budget that school officials called a tough compromise — but the district’s teachers union and some education activists weren’t happy with the results. 

The nation’s second-largest school district in June approved a $18.8 billion budget, avoiding layoffs by tapping into retirement money for teachers. School officials said it was necessary after the end of federal COVID relief money, and less state funding tied to falling enrollment. 

LAUSD’s school board passed the budget unanimously. But the influential union that represents 35,000 teachers and educators in LAUSD, United Teachers Los Angeles, wasn’t happy. 

The union opposed the new financial plan because it doesn’t anticipate the future salary increases UTLA is pushing.

“Stability means staffing that is experienced, familiar, and trusted,” said UTLA President Cecily Myart-Cruz at a board meeting in June. “We need a budget that raises salaries. We need to recruit and retain educators.”

UTLA has been fighting for increased salaries for years — and the union scored a victory in 2023, with a contract that raised teachers’ pay by 21% on average. However, that contract expires in 2025, setting up another round of tough negotiations. 

Carvalho said he sympathized with the teachers’ union, but LAUSD has never received the federal and state money it needs. “Those are the culprits,” Carvalho said. 

Carvalho said he would not allow any furloughs or layoffs this year. But he and the board will reconsider staffing cuts when they take up the budget again in December, he said. 

“No one is losing their job. But we do have a problem for FY27, and we will be revisiting this issue,” said Carvalho.

Meanwhile, Joseph Williams, Executive Director for the non-profit Students Deserve and a partner with the Police Free in LAUSD Coalition, said the groups opposed the district’s new budget because it contains funding for school police. 

“We are definitely of the opinion that absolutely no educational positions should be touched before every single police position is eliminated,” Williams said. 

Some demands from Williams’ groups and the teachers union were realized in the new budget.

For example, UTLA’s Myart-Cruz urged Carvalho to make funding cuts to district operations and off-campus consultants in order to preserve funding for teachers. 

Carvalho made moves to honor that wish, reducing central operations funding by $200 million. 

The district then redirected that money to projects supported by the union and community groups such as Williams’.

Myart-Cruz and others had asked the district to fund projects including the Black Student Achievement Plan, student centers, early education, LGBTQ+ support groups, and arts in schools.