NDE outlines return-on-investment reporting plan and data-management work to support school-level finance transparency
October 18, 2025 | Department of Education, Executive Agencies, Organizations, Executive, Nevada
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The Nevada Department of Education presented a multi-year plan to meet SB 460’s new accountability and reporting requirements by improving school-level finance coding, replacing the current data collection tool, and piloting an annual allocation-reporting file for LEAs.
Emilio Thibault, Director of the Division of Compliance at NDE, walked commissioners through statutory changes in SB 460 that require the statewide accountability system to monitor how districts and charter sponsors allocate resources to improve pupil outcomes. Thibault framed the work as an effort to align existing reporting (NRS 387/388 annual expenditure reports, federal F33 survey, ESSA financial transparency) to a standardized chart of accounts and to a forthcoming data management system (DMS) funded in part by federal SLDS dollars.
NDE said it has already begun charter-accounting compliance audits and will next focus on coding compliance for district and charter finance reports so school, fund, object and function codes are comparable across LEAs. "The coding by which we're doing this information is really the primary mechanism for how we're able to get into the detail of what a given district or school is allocating funds to and utilizing it for," Thibault said.
NDE described a two-year plan to convert manual Excel submissions into a centralized data collection tool, replace the legacy EdGate/Insight contract that populates the per-pupil expenditures portal, and pilot a school-level allocation report in 2026. Thibault suggested pairing report development with skill-building for boards and district teams on system-strategy return on investment (SSROI) and resource-allocation reviews, which are tools to help districts align budgets, evidence and targeted interventions.
Why it matters: SB 460 requires the accountability system to track how PCFP dollars are used to improve outcomes. NDE’s plan addresses foundational needs — consistent school identifiers, standardized chart-of-accounts coding and a single data-management pipeline — before attempting statewide ROI calculations. The department emphasized pilot testing and working-group consultation to reduce reporting burden.
Ending: NDE asked the commission to provide input on file specifications and data elements for the annual allocation report and said it expects to pilot collections in 2026 while continuing chart-of-accounts compliance work and the DMS rollout.
Emilio Thibault, Director of the Division of Compliance at NDE, walked commissioners through statutory changes in SB 460 that require the statewide accountability system to monitor how districts and charter sponsors allocate resources to improve pupil outcomes. Thibault framed the work as an effort to align existing reporting (NRS 387/388 annual expenditure reports, federal F33 survey, ESSA financial transparency) to a standardized chart of accounts and to a forthcoming data management system (DMS) funded in part by federal SLDS dollars.
NDE said it has already begun charter-accounting compliance audits and will next focus on coding compliance for district and charter finance reports so school, fund, object and function codes are comparable across LEAs. "The coding by which we're doing this information is really the primary mechanism for how we're able to get into the detail of what a given district or school is allocating funds to and utilizing it for," Thibault said.
NDE described a two-year plan to convert manual Excel submissions into a centralized data collection tool, replace the legacy EdGate/Insight contract that populates the per-pupil expenditures portal, and pilot a school-level allocation report in 2026. Thibault suggested pairing report development with skill-building for boards and district teams on system-strategy return on investment (SSROI) and resource-allocation reviews, which are tools to help districts align budgets, evidence and targeted interventions.
Why it matters: SB 460 requires the accountability system to track how PCFP dollars are used to improve outcomes. NDE’s plan addresses foundational needs — consistent school identifiers, standardized chart-of-accounts coding and a single data-management pipeline — before attempting statewide ROI calculations. The department emphasized pilot testing and working-group consultation to reduce reporting burden.
Ending: NDE asked the commission to provide input on file specifications and data elements for the annual allocation report and said it expects to pilot collections in 2026 while continuing chart-of-accounts compliance work and the DMS rollout.
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