Emmett Independent District hears presentation on revised 2024-25 budget and proposed 2025-26 spending plan

Emmett Independent District finance staff presented the revised 2024-25 budget and the proposed 2025-26 budget at a public hearing, summarizing state and federal revenue shifts, carryover plans and program-level adjustments ahead of the board’s regular meeting.

The district’s revised 2024-25 figures include $1.2 million received under House Bill 292, of which $1 million was applied to cover the district’s supplemental levy and about $218,000 was transferred into Fund 435 (school district facility funds) for maintenance projects. The revised budget also reflects a state allocation tied to House Bill 521 listed at $10,000,005.19 and a carryover to the school modernization fund of $10,000,000.

“...we received 1,200,000.0. The 1,000,000 covered our supplemental levy,” Crystal, the district finance staff member who presented the budgets, said while walking the board through the revenue tables. Crystal explained that the HB 292 money did not all remain in the general fund; the portion exceeding the levy formula moved to the designated fund for facility maintenance.

Why it matters: the state and federal awards and carryover will influence near-term capital work, school maintenance and whether the district needs to draw on its contingency. Crystal said the district held a $1,000,000 contingency that the board has maintained and prefers not to spend unless necessary.

Key revenue changes and timing The revised 2024-25 budget shows a drop in local revenue relative to the prior year because the district included one-time supplemental funds received earlier (the speaker said those flowed through state allocations). Federal revenue fell in part because ESSER funds were exhausted — Crystal noted ESSER expenditures had to finish by September and that roughly $728,000 tied to ESSER had been reflected in 2024-25. Federal carryover and timing of federal fiscal years (Oct.–Sept.) contributed to uncertainty in the 2025-26 proposed figures.

Crystal described how the district estimated some revenue conservatively for the proposed 2025-26 budget; for example, because the district will not levy a supplemental levy in 2025-26, HB 292 receipts will go directly into Fund 435 rather than into the general fund first.

Program and staffing changes The presentation listed several program-level adjustments in the revised budget and in the 2025-26 proposal. Notable items: the district plans to hire an in-house speech-language pathologist (changing expense from purchase services to salaries and benefits), added 1.5 nursing positions and a psychologist this year, and added a registrar position that will serve multiple school sites including the district’s virtual/digital programs.

Crystal said changes in the salary schedule produced upward pressure on salary and benefit lines: an “advanced professional” pay category was added and minimum salary apportionment amounts were raised in state calculations (Crystal cited a minimum for the advanced professional column of $64,004.27 in the state’s salary apportionment table used for budgeting). She also noted that some previously one-time stipends paid in 2024-25 were moved into regular pay columns for 2025-26, which alters how totals appear line to line.

Facilities and capital spending A new school district facility fund (Fund 435) received the portion of HB 292 funds above the levy requirement; Crystal said those monies must be used for maintenance. The school modernization fund, seeded with a $10,000,000 state allocation tied to House Bill 521, carries specific restrictions: the district must use the money for facility repairs or construction under the program rules, Crystal said, and the district is tracking those dollars separately.

Other notable items discussed - The district paid an Idaho Power judgment in 2024-25 rather than recover it through taxes; that expense drove a one-time increase in the textbooks/board category in the revised budget. - The district’s ABM custodial contract was transitioned midyear; salary and benefit lines decreased while purchase services rose to reflect the contract costs now paid out of the general fund after ESSER expiration. - Medicaid reimbursements were higher than earlier estimates; Crystal said she was told the district expects about $600,000 in Medicaid reimbursement (up from earlier estimates near $500,000), which reduces the amount that must be transferred into the general fund to cover Medicaid-related expense.

Board members asked clarifying questions about contingency, escrow requirements for Medicaid billing, grant administration and how online/virtual programs will be budgeted if they become a separate charter or school. Crystal said federal grants are assigned specific fund codes, reported through federal systems (JustGrants for some grants), and that grant accounting requires multiple checks (budget submission, expenditure reporting and receipts) and sign-offs by district staff and program authorizers.

No formal votes were taken during the public hearing portion; the board will consider budget actions at its regular meeting later in the evening. The public hearing closed ahead of the board’s 6 p.m. meeting.

Ending Board members and staff indicated they will review the revised and proposed documents further at the upcoming meeting; Crystal said more detailed line-item pages were available for trustees who had follow-up questions.