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Tangipahoa Parish business services outlines payroll, grants and audit awards; sales tax up year to date
Summary
Director of business services Deborah Anderson outlined the district’s finance operations, said TPSS received ASBO and GFOA certificates for its audit, and staff reported positive sales‑tax trends and details on payroll and grant reimbursements.
At the Oct. 2 Tangipahoa Parish School Board meeting, Deborah Anderson, director of business services, outlined the district’s finance functions and presented results from the most recent audit cycle, saying Tangipahoa Parish School System (TPSS) again received national certificates for its annual comprehensive financial report.
Anderson told the board the department processes payroll for 3,108 full‑time employees plus more than 200 substitutes and temporaries twice a month, handles travel reimbursements and stipends, and administers purchasing and accounts payable that together process more than $20 million in checks monthly. She described risk management activity, noting the department processed 363 claims for employee and student injuries since Sept. 20, 2024.
Anderson said TPSS received both the Association of School Business Officials International certificate of excellence in financial reporting and the Government Finance Officers Association certificate of achievement for excellence in financial reporting for the audit year cited. She recounted historic comparisons showing growth since the district first won awards in the 1980s and supplied figures from the 2024 audit: general fund expenditures near $201,000,000 and an ending fund balance of $27,965,174 (figures presented by staff).
Separately during the meeting, staff reported positive sales‑tax trends: one local sales‑tax measure was up about 3 percent for the month and was running close to 8 percent year to date in the presenter’s summary, and the district’s 2¢ sales tax was reported at roughly 5.5 percent growth versus the prior year for the same period. Staff also described the timing of a state‑approved $500 stipend distribution to employees and clarified two payments would be processed: the stipend and the employee’s normal paycheck.
Board members and staff praised the business‑services team for audit work and day‑to‑day financial operations. Anderson introduced and recognized several department staff by name for their roles in budgeting, purchasing, school finance and risk management.
