West Greene board adopts budget, taxes unchanged
ROGERSVILLE – West Greene School Board adopted the district’s 2014-15 budget Thursday, setting the property tax rate at 19.5 mills, a rate that has remained unchanged for 12 years.
The $16,381,917 budget is $1,253,615 greater than the current budget, primarily as a result of increases in costs for salaries, benefits and retirement contributions and efforts to more closely align budget projections with actual spending, business manager Shannon Rutan said.
The budget was adopted in a 5-3 vote, with board member Regina MacDowell, Joe Coss and Tom Coss voting against it. Board member Lynn Wise was absent.
Joe Coss said he believes the district has to begin bringing spending under control. He compared the district’s budget and enrollment to those of other districts in the county.
“We have the second highest budget and the second lowest enrollment,” Coss said. The district has about 717 students.
Southeastern Greene School District, the district closest in size, has an enrollment of about 640 students and a budget of only about $10.6 million, he said. Carmichaels Area has a budget of about $15.5 million, but more than 1,000 students, he said.
Though MacDowell noted West Greene has higher transportation costs because of its size, Coss said that only accounts for about $1 million.
Asked where reductions could be made, Coss spoke of the district’s low teacher to student ratio, which he said is about eight to one. He suggested the board consider not replacing some teachers as they retire, particularly in the higher grades where a low teacher to student ratio is not considered as important.
MacDowell agreed, but said she believes any reductions should be done “with precision” to avoid impacting educational programs.
About $9.5 million of the districts’ budget goes toward salaries and benefits, Rutan said.
The largest increases in the budget were for retirement contributions and health insurance, each of which will jump by about 4 percent, she said.
In regard to revenue, the district will see an increase in local revenue because of higher assessment values associates with coal. State and federal funding are expected to remain about the same as they are this year, Rutan said.
The district has not raised taxes since 2002. It now has a fund balance of about $2.9 million, or 15 percent of its operating budget, which is on the high side of what is recommended for a district of West Greene’s size.
The board approved the homestead or farmstead exclusion resolution. Under the resolution, eligible property owners will be able to subtract $83.51 from their property tax bill this year.
In other business, the board approved purchasing a subscription to On Hand Schools for $44,750. The company has a web site that provides teachers and administrators with student test data that will be used to assess the students’ strengths and weaknesses.
The site will help teachers better interpret test data that fits with the academic goals established by the district’s academic improvement committee, board member Chad Scott said. Most of the costs of the subscription will be paid by the Race to the Top grant.
The board approved childbearing leave for special education teacher Brandy Rohrer from Aug. 21 to Sept. 29; and medical sabbaticals for the 2014-15 school year for Joyce Conklin, a sixth-grade teacher, and Nancee West, a fourth-grade teacher.
The board ratified the superintendent’s approval to hold the 2015 high school prom at the George Washington hotel in Washington April 25. It was noted that the junior class will be helping to raise money for the prom to help out the senior class.
The board ratified several change orders on the elementary construction project.
Two that failed, submitted by the general contractor, Liokareas Comnstruction, involved hauling additional soil from the project site to the Jacktown Fairground, $12,771.07; and installing a drain beneath the diversion channel behind the site’s main retaining wall, $38,683.71.