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New finance director outlines budget basics, rising costs and staffing pressures for Silver Falls
Summary
Silver Falls' new finance director and controller briefed the board on Oregon budget law, fund structure, revenue trends and cost pressures — including utilities and benefits — and discussed enrollment changes that may require an additional licensed teacher and classified aide at two schools.
The Silver Falls School District finance team gave the school board a high‑level briefing on budget law, revenue sources and growing cost pressures at a work session, emphasizing the district's limited control over revenues and the need to manage expenditures closely.
Tom (district finance director) reviewed Oregon budget law and the district's fund structure, telling the board that roughly 75% of the district’s budget is the general fund and that state school fund support and property taxes make up the largest revenue sources. "71% of the revenue is state support followed by 21% of the property taxes," he said.
Tom and Tabitha Welch, the district controller, identified several fiscal stress points: utilities have averaged double‑digit annual increases, fringe‑benefit costs (including PERS) have risen about 10% on average over the last decade, and state support increases have averaged roughly 4% year‑over‑year. "Utilities used to be 1.5% of our budget 10 years ago.…
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