Macon County schools say ESSER grants drove 2024 fund‑balance rebound; commissioners discuss a permanent funding target

School finance staff told the Macon County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday that federal ESSER pandemic grants drove a large jump in the school system’s fund balance in 2024 and that the district has appropriated roughly $1.1 million of fund balance for the upcoming year.

Lainie, identified in the meeting as the presenter on school finances, said the district received $19,955,990 in Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds beginning in June 2020 and that ESSER spending accounted for much of the fund‑balance swings from 2020 through 2024. She said ESSER funds had to be liquidated by December 2024.

The presentation included charts of beginning‑ and end‑of‑year fund balances from fiscal years 2016–2024, and Lainie noted a $434,000 discrepancy between the 2022 year‑end balance and the 2023 beginning balance that the district has asked its auditor to review. She described ESSER expenditures as focused on instruction, safety and student support and said the district used ESSER to “preserve local dollars and build our fund balance.”

The presentation also included a county question about per‑pupil spending. Commissioners asked staff to calculate the figure; Lainie reported a current per‑pupil cost of about $2,056.

Commissioners pressed the school officials on longer‑term funding. Several commissioners said the county should consider setting a percentage of county revenue for school funding so both elected bodies can plan. One commissioner said the state’s funding mix is roughly 70% state, 20% local and 10% federal, and noted Macon County’s proposed local share is about 21%.

Commissioners and school officials also discussed the county’s contingency line. The proposed county budget includes $200,246 in contingency; some commissioners said they would support using contingency or other unassigned fund balance to boost the school current‑expense budget and asked staff to prepare budget options before the public hearing. County staff said contingency can be replaced by unassigned fund balance if the board prefers and that capital reimbursements and monthly operating allocations are handled differently in their accounting.

Why it matters: Commissioners must decide whether to change long‑term funding practices for the school system — such as adopting a fixed percentage of the county budget for schools — and whether to shift one‑time contingency funding into ongoing school operating support. The school system also flagged an audit variance that could affect fund‑balance projections.

Commissioners asked for additional data before a final budget decision. Staff agreed to provide options, including an ordinance and budget versions reflecting different tax/service fee scenarios and any contingency transfers, for the board’s June 10 meeting and to follow up with the auditor on the noted 2022–2023 variance.