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District financial report: July activity light; OPEB funds remain split across accounts as board weighs consolidation
Summary
Beloit School District presented July financials showing limited operating activity, a $47,000 PMA investment posting, a partial $75,000 MacBook sale payment and ongoing discussion about OPEB funds held in two accounts and a referendum debt reserve.
At the Business Operations & Finance Committee meeting on Sept. 2, district financial officer Mrs. Ellwood presented the financials for the month ending July and described July as a low‑activity month for revenues and expenditures.
Ellwood told the committee that “we did have a little over $47,000 that got posted for our PMA investment” and that interest rates on investments were “holding steadily just around 4%.” She also said the district received part of the payment from a MacBook sale — “the 75,000 in the month of July” — and expected the remaining payments later.
Ellwood said payroll‑related expenditures are light in July because many teacher and administrator salaries are posted to June; July salaries accounted for roughly 37% of total July expenditures.
The discussion turned to OPEB (Other Post‑Employment Benefits) funds. A board member recalled that combined OPEB balances were about $4.8 million last fall and asked whether the funds remain in two accounts. Ellwood confirmed the OPEB funds are “in 2 separate bank accounts,” naming First Mid Bank & Trust and an associated bank investment account. She said the First Mid portion has been treated as a fixed‑rate deposit used for monthly bills in prior years, while the associated bank funds are invested by an adviser and are less liquid: “it's a little more, complicated to get it out. It's a couple of months of paperwork.”
Board members asked whether consolidation into a single OPEB account would make sense. Ellwood said the Associated Bank investments were “doing very well” and the administration had kept funds partly separate to preserve liquidity; she said the district could look into consolidation but had not yet done so.
Ellwood also reminded the committee that the district is holding referendum debt proceeds that were taxed for two years ago; the funds are being retained so the district can make required debt payments in a way that avoids arbitrage issues, and staff said they will return with a recommendation on timing in the coming months.
No finance committee motion to change investment or OPEB arrangements was made that night; committee members discussed options and asked staff to follow up with more detail to the board.
