Superintendent presents balanced FY25-26 budget proposal amid state-level uncertainty

Anderson School District 5 administration presented a balanced FY25-26 budget proposal that keeps millage flat and adds several staff and program costs while warning of two pending state actions that could affect district finances.

Doctor Kelly (staff) and Miss Hurd (district staff) told trustees the district had prepared a balanced budget that incorporated state-mandated teacher step increases and additional locally requested positions, including a full-time translator, a Robert Anderson office staff change from part-time to full-time, and middle- and high-school interventionists. The presentation also included a recommendation to raise teacher pay steps by $2,000 and a 2% cost-of-living increase for other staff.

Administrators and the superintendent emphasized two legislative items that could materially affect the district: a state tax-cut proposal (two versions were described, including a near-immediate 50% reduction scenario and a three-year reduction to 6) and a proposal to expand state-paid parental leave from 6 weeks to 12 weeks for employees. Staff estimated the immediate 50% tax cut scenario could cost Anderson 05 roughly $700,000; county officials are engaged in negotiations with legislators and the district expects more detail after conference committee work. On paid parental leave, district staff said state action to extend to 12 weeks would increase substitute-teacher costs and create a substantial instructional impact because teachers could miss half of a semester in some cases.

The budget document also allocates funding for: additional translator support (administration said district currently serves some 42 languages), increased insurance and workers'compensation costs, middle-school security equipment and recurring personnel/subscription costs, principal salary adjustments, and a proposed increase in the district's contract contribution to Renaissance Academy for building maintenance and a needed HVAC project. Staff described two options for the middle-school security plan: lease equipment with an annual lease-and-subscription cost in the plan, or purchase the equipment outright (staff stated an outright purchase would be roughly $2.0 million up front with lower multi-year recurring costs, while leasing would spread payments but reduce short-term cash needs).

Board members questioned several line items and asked staff to separate capital purchases from recurring personnel costs where feasible. Trustees also discussed a proposed sick-leave payout for employees who hold more than 90 days of accrued sick leave; administration recommended a payout formula ($65 per day for days above 90 was presented as an illustrative number drawn from other districts) and noted the policy has not been paid since the mid-2000s. Staff ran a payroll-based estimate and said the recommended starting figure was included with a buffer; trustees discussed redirecting some of that dollar amount toward additional teaching assistants or other personnel instead of a one-time payout.

No final action was taken; trustees asked for clarifying materials and indicated the board will vote on the budget at the next scheduled meeting (special-called meeting language appeared elsewhere in the discussion).