The Michigan state budget is at a standstill, and without it, school officials say they don't know how much money they can bank on. 

For months, lawmakers could not get past a few sticking points to agree on the budget, such as funding for universal school meals, which students across the state had access to for the last couple of years. Now, access to free meals varies by district.   

"We've always historically had an idea of what we would get-- this year is very different," said Nicholas Russo, superintendent of Rochester Community Schools. "We're going to continue to offer free meals until September 30th for sure and then see what happens."

Lawmakers said that another sticking point is a decision to tie road funding to the education budget. That financial uncertainty means different things for each school district. In Rochester Hills, Russo said the district is being financially cautious.   

"I don't even follow the mindset or the thought process behind tying something else to funding for public education," Russo said. "It feels like they're putting children as a bargaining chip and just don't feel like that is a very responsible way to act as a legislative body."

He added, "We have not officially made any major cuts; we have many contingency plans for what that could look like."

Russo said, despite the uncertainty, Rochester Community Schools is optimistic about this next school year.  

"We can still provide many opportunities and really robust experiences for students and families here in the district, that doesn't mean that we're not nervous about what could potentially happen with the state budget, but we're very excited about what this year can bring," he said. 

Russo said his message to lawmakers is simple: set aside partisan politics and pass the budget.