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Cheltenham SD reports $4.5 million year‑over‑year cash increase; revenues and expenditures both rose through December
Summary
District finance staff told the committee the district’s cash position is stronger than a year ago, with nearly $112 million collected year-to-date, increases in local and state revenue, and higher expenditures partly due to retroactive salary payments and building operations.
Cheltenham School District finance staff told the finance committee on Jan. 7 that the district’s cash position improved by about $4.5 million compared with the prior year and that year‑to‑date revenue collections through December totaled nearly $112 million.
"Cash is still strong, $4,500,000 increase over the prior year," Staff member Josh Sweigler said while reviewing the balance sheet. Sweigler said total revenue collected to date is about $112 million versus about $109 million in the prior year, an increase of roughly $2.7 million.
Why it matters: stronger cash balances give the district more short-term flexibility, but staff warned that expenditures are also higher. The committee reviewed the major drivers behind both the revenue gains and the spending increase.
Key figures and drivers
- Revenues: local-source revenue rose about $1.9 million, driven by stronger real-estate tax collections and a 1% real-estate tax increase; state-source revenue increased about $700,000, primarily because of increased homestead funds the state authorized this year; federal revenue was reported as comparable year‑over‑year.
- Overall collections: "we've collected almost $112,000,000 to date versus a 109 in the prior year, an increase of 2,700,000," Sweigler said.
- Expenditures: expenditures were up roughly $3.5 million year over year through December. Staff attributed part of that to retroactive salary payments related to contract settlements and to operational facilities work done over the summer.
- Interest earnings: lower interest rates reduced investment income by about $90,000 year to date, Sweigler said, after recent Federal Reserve rate cuts lowered yields from over 5% to around 4% on cash holdings.
Facilities and operations
Finance staff highlighted increased facilities costs. "One of our largest drivers now is some boiler issues we're experiencing at Elkins Park," Sweigler said, noting the building’s age is producing ongoing operational problems that are driving maintenance costs.
Next steps
Committee members asked questions about the income statement and year‑to‑date numbers; staff agreed to provide further details in follow-up materials for the preliminary budget process. The finance committee will consider these trends as it prepares the preliminary budget in the coming month.
