Grantham voters decide on 6.3% school budget increase and open-enrollment policy

Facing a roughly 6.3% proposed hike for the 2026-27 school budget, Grantham voters went to the polls on Feb 20, 2026 to decide that spending plan and whether the Grantham School District will adopt a formal open-enrollment policy that governs students from other towns. The dual ballot questions linked classroom funding and district boundaries in a single local decision.

The 6.3% figure applied to the Grantham School District’s proposed 2026-27 budget and represented the clearest numeric choice on the ballot. School officials framed the increase as the central funding decision for the coming school year; voters had to weigh that percentage against the town’s fiscal priorities. Because the proposal targeted the district’s operating budget for 2026-27, its approval or rejection will determine staffing, programming, and purchasing planned in Grantham schools for the next academic cycle.

The open-enrollment question asked whether the Grantham School District should adopt a policy setting terms under which students from other municipalities can attend Grantham schools. If approved, the open-enrollment policy will create an explicit framework for accepting out-of-district students and for assigning any tuition or capacity limits. Voters were told the policy would shape how Grantham manages classroom size and potential tuition revenue from neighboring towns under the district’s control.

Local fiscal and enrollment effects were the practical stakes behind both questions. A 6.3% increase in the 2026-27 budget could change the district’s requests to taxpayers and influence class offerings in Grantham schools, while an open-enrollment policy could alter net enrollment numbers that feed back into per-pupil spending calculations. Grantham parents and property owners were asked to consider those concrete tradeoffs on Feb 20, 2026 when casting their ballots.

The outcome of the Feb 20, 2026 vote will set policy and budget parameters for the Grantham School District for the 2026-27 school year. With both a numerical budget increase and a new admissions policy on the line, the vote tied immediate fiscal choices to longer-term enrollment strategy for Grantham schools. Local officials will now move to implement the decision of voters, shaping classrooms and district policy for the coming year.