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CFO: State funding largely unchanged; district may receive roughly $950,000 from facilities bond pool
Summary
CFO Brian Wallace told the board the Legislature left many K‑12 formulas unchanged, provided modest categorical increases including an 8.7% medical benefit allocation, and that proceeds from a larger bond sale could yield about $950,000 for district facilities work.
Brian Wallace, the district chief financial officer, told the Lake Pend Oreille School District board on April 8 that the Idaho Legislature left most funding formulas intact and the district should plan for a largely “maintained” budget year.
Wallace said two proposed changes to a weighted student funding formula did not pass and that the district will be funded under the same attendance and funding‑unit formulas used in recent years. He said the state provided an 8.7% increase in the medical portion of funding and a 5% increase in elements of the certified and classified funding bases used in the state formula.
"It’s sort of status quo is what the legislature did," Wallace said, summarizing the session's finance outcomes. He warned that the medical‑benefit funding increase will not fully cover the district's expected rise in health insurance costs and that salary and benefits remain the largest expenditure pressure.
Wallace described a lump‑sum facilities pool created by prior legislation (House Bill 292) and said more dollars could flow into a related fund created by House Bill 481. He said the Legislature's recent bond sale produced larger proceeds than expected and that the state placed $86,000,000 to be distributed by average daily attendance; the district’s share at about 1.2% would be approximately $950,000. "So we'll have to see that be distributed next year," Wallace said.
On enrollment and revenue assumptions, Wallace said the district is projecting roughly 3,800 students and about 190 funded units, with projections to be finalized once the state releases templates. He described the current planning approach as conservative: keep spending flat where possible, apply new medical dollars toward staff, and prioritize facility work already underway, such as Sandpoint Middle School projects and the CTEC project.
Wallace told the board he expects the district to receive formal budget templates in the coming weeks and to present a draft budget at the May board meeting, with the formal budget hearing scheduled for June.
Board members asked clarifying questions but took no immediate action; Wallace said negotiations with employee groups and final state allocations will shape the final numbers.
