Orono board reviews preliminary FY24–25 results, approves certification of maximum payable-2026 levy

The Orono Public School District Board of Education on Thursday reviewed preliminary fiscal-year 2024–25 financial results, discussed enrollment and budget pressures, and voted to direct the district clerk to certify the maximum available property tax levy amount to the Hennepin County auditor for payable 2026.

Director of business services Nick Tainter presented the preliminary general-fund results and said the audit is still underway, so figures remain preliminary. He reported a preliminary general-fund surplus of about $200,000 — down from a surplus of more than $900,000 the previous year — and said salaries and employee benefits make up about 83% of the district’s total expenditures.

Tainter told the board that general-fund revenues grew by about 2.63% while expenditures grew by about 4.48% year over year. He said state aid…