Fayetteville School District Unveils $93 Million Budget

FAYETTEVILLE -- A proposed $93 million budget was unveiled to the School Board.

The budget is less than a year ago, mostly reflected in a buyout program last school year, said Kathy Hanlon, chief financial officer.

Meeting Info

School Board Meeting

When: Thursday

Time: 5 p.m.

Where: Ray Adams Leadership Center, 1000 Bulldog Blvd.

Source: Staff Report

The proposed spending plan will be approved at the next board meeting Sept. 25, said Superintendent Paul Hewitt.

Much of the discussion by the board focused on the building fund which shows $16.2 million left to finish the Fayetteville High School project by next August. Increases in salaries for certified and classified employees aren't included in the budget.

Bryn Bagwell, board member, asked, "Have we made sure that's enough to make the high school fully functional?"

Hanlon said she met with David Tate, maintenance manager, and Patti Plummer, campus services and project manager, since joining the district Aug. 4 and noted nothing came up in those meetings to cause concern the project can't be finished within that amount.

"Everything is on track on the high school," Hanlon said.

The project was budgeted at about $95 million. Construction accounts for about $80 million of that amount under the maximum price contract the district has with the construction manager, Nabholz Construction Services. About $12 million is still owed Nabholz.

The 2015 budget shows expenditures of $684,688 for architectural fees; $2.9 million for technology; $406,405, for furniture; and $222,296 for miscellaneous expenses, according to the building fund summary budget as developed by Hanlon.

That will leave about $2.2 million in the building fund for other projects.

Bagwell wants to see a thorough review of the high school costs "to make sure we haven't left anything out," she said. She added she doesn't have a specific concern about the unpaid costs.

"I've been on the board for four years and I've never seen a report," she said after the meeting.

The budget meeting was attended by central office and building level administrators because they are required to do professional development in school districts finances as part of their annual training.

The district projects to spend $40.9 million in salaries and benefits for teachers, which account for about 55 percent of the budget. The entire payroll accounts for about 75 percent of the budget, Hanlon said. During the last fiscal year, the district spent $41.8 million on teacher salaries and benefits.

Only about 11 percent of the budget is available for discretionary spending in the area of utilities and services and supplies. The rest of the expenditures are fixed costs, such as the 9 percent allocated for operating and maintenance of the district, which is a state requirement, Hanlon said.

Bagwell also said she wants to see where efficiency can be incorporated in the budget and Traci Farrah, another board member, said she also wants in the coming months to see a program for equipment replacement in some departments such as food service.

Hanlon said that would be a project developed with department heads during the fiscal year which started July 1 and continues until June 30.

NW News on 09/18/2014

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