The Northumberland County Board of Supervisors on July 30 approved a $175,000 supplemental appropriation for the school division to cover miscellaneous FY25 overspending and directed the school division and county to proceed with contract work by accounting firm UHY to stabilize year-end reporting.
Jack Regan of UHY, who attended the special meeting with Superintendent Dr. Leslie, told the board the schools initially asked for $410,000 to create a cushion against unrecorded invoices but later refined the net need to roughly $89,835 based on transfers and current projections. Regan said the larger request was to "ensure that there is a little bit of cushion in the each of the appropriations categories" so the division would not have to return repeatedly to the board for additional supplemental appropriations if previously unknown invoices arrived.
Why it matters: Supervisors and UHY described gaps in FY25 purchasing controls that left some invoices without purchase orders, creating uncertainty about final year-end liabilities. The board approved a modest cushion while demanding monthly transparency and purchase-order reporting to prevent the same problem in FY26.
Most important facts: Board members said the county is budget-constrained and wanted to limit the amount provided immediately. After discussion, the board rescinded the earlier $410,000 allowance and instead approved $175,000. The board instructed the school division to return any funds not needed once books are closed and audit adjustments are complete.
Supporting details and process changes: UHY outlined steps the school division will take to change its procurement and accounts-payable workflow: directors and budget holders must create purchase orders when an obligation is known; invoices must be routed to the program director for certification that goods or services were rendered; finance staff will match invoices to purchase orders before payment; and recurring large payments will be encumbered with annual purchase orders to reduce last-minute scrambling. Regan described planned weekly staffing levels for UHY support — about 24 hours per week in July and August, tapering in September — and said UHY would not exceed previously disclosed billing estimates for the engagement.
Board action and amounts: The $175,000 supplemental appropriation was broken down by category in the motion as: instruction $140,000; administration and health $5,000; pupil transportation $15,000; operations and maintenance $10,000; and technology $5,000. Supervisors agreed that the minimum shortfall projected was about $89,835 and that the remainder of the approved $175,000 is cushion; any unspent cushion will be returned after year-end accounting and audit adjustments.
Transparency and reporting direction: Supervisors required the superintendent and UHY to provide monthly reports on open purchase orders and year-to-date spending, and to separately report any invoices that "came through the cracks" despite prior data calls. Regan told the board, "We will report those separately to the school board. We'll report those separately to you so that you can see that...that occurred." The board said it expects those reports to be presented through the superintendent to the school board and then to the Board of Supervisors.
Votes and next steps: The motion to rescind the prior $410,000 action and adopt the $175,000 supplemental appropriation with the stated category breakdown passed (ayes). The board also voted to allow the UHY contract work to move forward and to let the school division seek the supplemental appropriation entry needed to pay UHY through the appropriate fiscal channels.
Context and caution: Supervisors repeatedly emphasized past problems with year-end spending and said the county is "very strapped"; they approved a limited cushion and insisted on stronger internal controls and reporting to avoid repeat supplemental requests.
Ending note: UHY and school leadership said they will continue the new purchase-order discipline into FY26 and present regular budget-status updates to restore confidence in the division's financial reporting.