State Controlling Board approves solvency assistance for Trimble Local; recovery plan due in 120 days

The State Controlling Board approved item 46 on its agenda, granting solvency assistance to Trimble Local School District and placing the district under an oversight commission. President Schueller said there were no objections and the item was approved.

Erin Rausch, deputy chief of staff at the Department of Education and Workforce, told the board that five Ohio school districts are currently under some type of state oversight and that, following an auditor's declaration two weeks earlier, Trimble Local was placed in fiscal emergency. "There are only 5 school districts in the state of Ohio that are in any type of oversight and, with the auditor's declaration 2 weeks ago placing Trimble Local in fiscal emergency — of those 5 only 2 are in fiscal emergency," Rausch said.

Rausch said the district faces nearly $3,000,000 in solvency assistance and that the default repayment schedule for that assistance is "over the course of the following 2 fiscal years." She added that the repayment schedule can be modified at the direction of the director of the Department of Education and Workforce and the director of the Office of Budget and Management, and that those directors can extend repayments up to 10 years.

Senator Ingram raised concerns about the repayment terms and the district's current financial position, saying, "I have a concern with the advancement and how it is, configured to be paid back, especially in light of where they are." Representative Stewart asked how the situation developed and what steps the district would need to take to meet expectations; Rausch replied that the district's spring FY24 five-year forecast did not indicate a deficit and that the district later identified a current-year deficit in the fall.

Rausch said Trimble Local has already made staffing reductions in advance of fiscal year 2026 and that the oversight commission will require a recovery plan within 120 days of the commission's creation. "Trimble Local will be required to establish a recovery plan within 120 days of the creation of the oversight commission," she said, adding that the department and the Office of Budget and Management can revisit repayment terms at the commission's direction or upon the district's request.

With no further questions and no objections recorded, President Schueller closed the item as approved. The board concluded its business and voted to adjourn.