Audit & Finance committee advances FY26 $71M facilities and IT plan, approves limited CBO awards after vetting discussion

CHARLESTON, S.C. — The Charleston County School District Audit & Finance Committee on March 4 voted to advance the district’s FY26 fixed-cost-of-ownership (FCO) budget and related financing resolutions to the full board and approved a set of limited, one-time community-based organization (CBO) awards after extended discussion about vetting and oversight.

The committee forwarded to the regular board meeting the district’s FCO package, a detailed program of equipment, maintenance and school-improvement projects that staff presented as a $71 million request for fiscal 2026. Staff said the program covers routine lifecycle replacements and smaller renovation projects — from HVAC and roof repairs to playgrounds, security upgrades and band instruments — and includes a one-time equipment and renovation project to outfit a culinary arts/performing-arts space at St. John’s High School.

The presentation emphasized the program’s largest categories as facility maintenance, information technology and software. IT items highlighted in the request include lifecycle replacement of classroom devices and staff computers, $4.6 million for network and infrastructure work, and a recommended software budget of about $16.1 million. Staff told the committee they plan to convert roughly 10 contractor positions to district full-time roles to reduce recurring contractor costs and improve in-house capacity for device management and project work. The committee voted to move the FCO package to the board for approval.

Why it matters: the FCO program funds recurring upkeep and mid-size improvements that keep buildings and learning technology operating between major capital projects. The committee’s action sends the full proposed FY26 operating and capital maintenance priorities to the board and preserves the district’s plan to manage device lifecycles and reduce contractor reliance.

Key details from staff presentations

- FCO total request: staff presented a $71 million FY26 FCO request covering 17 program areas including facilities maintenance, playgrounds, security, FF&E (furniture, fixtures and equipment), fine arts, athletics and special-project work (notably, the St. John’s culinary/black-box conversion as a one-time project).

- IT plan: staff described rising device counts across the district, recommended $2.9 million for staff computing in FY26, $375,000 for classroom device refreshes in a lighter classroom year, and $4.6 million for servers, networking, PA systems and security camera life-cycle work. A conversion of 10 contractor roles to full‑time employees was proposed, with salaries split between the operating fund and FCO.

- St. John’s reallocation: staff presented a reallocation of program contingency to fund improvements to St. John’s auditorium and conversion of a classroom into a black-box room. The committee voted to advance that reallocation to the board.

Capital projects and bids

Committee members were told bids for the C. Williams North campus (sixth-grade academy) came in about $4 million over the project’s original allocation. Staff said the lowest responsive bids exceeded the prior escalation assumptions and that additional sales-tax revenue receipts (staff noted a $2 million favorable December sales-tax posting) provided capacity to cover the shortfall. The committee advanced the reallocation to the board, with staff noting the project’s cost captures design, furniture and IT but does not include land acquisition.

Community-based organization funding and oversight

The committee considered a competitive CBO funding recommendation for fiscal 2025. The board had placed $200,000 in the FY25 budget for externally run wraparound services; staff opened a competitive application and received seven proposals requesting a total of $662,395. Using a four‑point rubric across five categories (alignment, impact, feasibility/sustainability, financial responsibility and accountability), staff recommended awarding $90,395 to four organizations as one-time awards.

Committee members raised sustained concerns about vendor vetting, background checks for people who work directly with students, and the procurement exemption that allows schools to engage wraparound vendors without a full competitive procurement. Staff described current controls: vendors must register with procurement, provide financial documentation, and individuals who enter schools are screened through the district’s visitor/badge system (RAPTOR) and subject to background checks when they receive school badges. Staff also said future awards would use contracts and purchase orders, require invoices and measurable outputs, and include reporting requirements for eligibility in subsequent fiscal years.

Borrowing and bond items

The committee advanced two related financing items: the bond anticipation note (BAN) series 2025 A and B, which staff described as short-term cash-flow instruments (series A supported by the district’s sinking fund; series B supported by phase-5 sales-tax receipts), and a recommendation to issue up to $55 million in general obligation bonds to complete previously authorized projects not included on the sales-tax referendum. Staff said the $55 million issuance is the remaining portion of an originally authorized $99.5 million envelope and is intended to fund projects already under construction so the district does not default on contracts.

Budget context and next steps

Finance staff summarized FY25 year-to-date results and FY26 projections: local revenues and state adjustments improved the revenue picture and staff now project a materially smaller use of fund balance than the budget originally assumed. Weighted student funding (WSF) was discussed: FY25 WSF was $32.8 million; staff proposed stepping to roughly $36 million in FY26 with a plan to phase out ESSER sustainability funds in later years so recurring revenues fully support WSF. Personnel proposals described in the budget planning included market alignment for classified staff (a proposed 3% across‑the‑board increase plus additional steps), a $4,000 increase for certified teachers across cells, and targeted adjustments for school leaders; those elements are part of the broader budget package to be advanced to the board.

Votes at a glance

- Move item 2A (FCO reallocation to St. John’s auditorium and black-box conversion): motion to advance to the board — outcome: moved forward to the board for consideration (committee voice vote: aye, no opposition reported).

- Item 2B (C. Williams North campus reallocation after bids): motion to advance to the board — outcome: moved forward to the board for consideration.

- Item 2C (FY25 CBO funding worksheet): motion to approve allocation of $90,395 to four organizations as recommended; staff noted awards are one-time and future funding requires reapplication — outcome: approved by committee (voice vote: aye, no opposition reported).

- Item 2D (General obligation bond anticipation note series 2025 A & B): motion to advance the resolutions to the board — outcome: moved forward to the board for adoption.

- Item 2E (General obligation bond series 2025 A — $55 million issuance to complete previously authorized projects): motion to advance the resolution to the board — outcome: moved forward to the board for adoption.

- Item 2F (FY26 FCO budget approval): motion to advance the FY26 fixed-cost-of-ownership package to the full board — outcome: moved forward to the board for approval.

What committee members asked staff to do

Committee members pressed staff to: provide public access to the CBO reporting list; tighten contract language to require invoicing and measurable outputs from funded CBOs; review the procurement exemption that governs school-based wraparound services; confirm background-check and onboarding procedures for nonemployee vendors who enter campuses; and provide board-level documentation on facility condition assessment and prioritization methodology used to build the FCO backlog and annual projects.

What happens next

All of the items the committee advanced were scheduled to appear on the district’s regular board meeting agenda for formal action. Staff said they will publish additional detail in board documents ahead of those meetings, share the CBO report publicly when ready, and provide supplemental material on facility condition assessments and the district’s long-range fund-balance projections at upcoming budget workshops and Committee of the Whole sessions.

Ending

The committee recessed into executive session at the end of the open session and later reconvened and approved a slate of recommended appointees to the committee for board consideration. The committee also discussed scheduling changes for its April–June meetings and directed staff to notice any calendar amendments to the board.