Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Budget Finance topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
District updates board on state budget outlook and March financials; impacts to revenue uncertain
Summary
School finance staff briefed the Milton School District Board on the state budget outlook and the district’s financial status through March at the May 12 meeting, noting uncertainty until the legislature finalizes the state budget.
Milton School District administrators updated the board May 12 on the state budget status and the district’s financial position through March.
Administrators reported the state legislature’s joint finance committee had begun executive sessions, and Governor Tony Evers had proposed increases in per‑pupil revenue limits (proposed $334 in year one and $345 in year two) and per‑pupil categorical aid increases (proposed $58 each year). The board was told legislators had removed several items from the governor’s proposal, including provisions on universal free school meals, certain workforce programs and voucher caps; the outlook remained unclear and the district continues to model multiple revenue scenarios.
Locally, staff reported that state aid payments to date are approximately 1% of expected general state aid and that the district had received 65–70% of categorical reimbursements year‑to‑date. The district’s food-service reimbursements are claimed monthly and lag in posting; federal-era pandemic boosts to school meal funding have ended, and the lunch program revenues will now reflect standard rates. On expenditures, the district reported roughly 53 percent of the annual budget spent through March, with staffing comprising about 75 percent of the budget and instructional salary/benefit expenditures expected in the 68–72 percent range through March.
Staff also reviewed debt service, capital maintenance funds, and timing of large expenditures such as insurance and debt-service payments, which typically occur earlier in the fiscal year. The administration noted some programmatic expenditures (transportation, substitute teachers, special education) were tracking higher relative to the prior year but characterized these as expected seasonal patterns.
Board members asked clarifying questions about categorical aid levels and the comparative amounts per pupil; staff answered with the governor’s requested figures and cautioned that legislature and joint finance committee actions will determine final state aid levels.
