LIBERTY — Amite County school officials are projecting a 15 to 17 percent cut in the school district’s fiscal 2010-’11 budget, Superintendent Debbie Hopf said.
Hopf said after Thursday’s board of education meeting that Mississippi Department of Education officials have told school superintendents to expect cuts of 12 to 17 percent in state funding for the coming fiscal year.
“They told us they’re expecting a 12 percent cut, but it could be as high as 15 to 17 percent,” she said. “We’re expecting the worst, and planning our budget in anticipation of a 17 percent cut.”
The extent of the funding cuts will have an impact of the school district’s fund balance, which school district business manager Sherie Jones told board members Thursday is projected to be $650,000 at the end of the current fiscal year.
Hopf said she hopes school officials will be able to manage the cuts to preserve most of the fund balance.
The Legislature reconvenes April 20 to finish writing the state budget.
Jones said after the board meeting that as of Feb. 5, state funds for the school district had been cut by 10 percent — a total of $466,719.
She said the recently signed budget restoration bill returned $88,214 to the school district budget, but she has not included the money in the budget figures.
“I haven’t put it back in, because we don’t know what other cuts are coming,” Jones said. “Every time we have meetings (with state officials) we keep hearing there may be more cuts.“We don’t know what’s going to happen,” Jones said.
Hopf said recent cuts in school funds and grants have forced the district to transfer money from one grant fund to another to help pay teacher salaries in the school system’s 21st Century program.
The board on Thursday transferred $22,305 from the district’s stimulus funds to help pay the salaries of two teachers in the 21st Century program.
Jones told board members that uncertainty over state funds has forced her to delay presenting the 2010-’11 budget to school trustees for their approval until August — more than a month after the budget takes effect on July 1.
Jones said the move is allowed under state law. She said the school board had to wait until August last year to approve the 2009-’10 budget because of similar issues with the state budget-writing process.
In other action, trustees:
• Approved $250 for Amite County Vocational Technical Center future Business Leaders of America members to attend state competition in Jackson this month.
• Recognized Judy Hughey, Hopf’s administrative assistant, as part of School District Administrative Assistants and Board Clerk’s week.
• Reduced acreage from 35 acres to 2.15 acres on a tract of 16th Section land in Gillsburg for Doralene Reynolds, who is changing her lease from farm-residential to residential.
• Approved a timber bid of $417,790 from Weyerhaeuser for 124 acres of 16th Section land on Hamp Lea Road.
• Approved a hunting and fishing lease on 403 acres of 16th Section land on Barron Road for Steven Colkmire at $15 an acre.
• Agreed to advertise for a timber lease on 153 acres of 16th Section land on South Greensburg Road.
• Learned that the Liberty Elementary School restoration project is on schedule.
The school was damaged by high winds in March 2009. The project is expected to be completed by the end of this school year.
