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Orono board approves revised 2024-25 general fund budget after midyear review
Summary
The Orono Public School District Board of Education on April 14 approved a revised general fund budget for the 2024–25 fiscal year after a midyear review that accounts for enrollment changes and a state special-education proration.
The Orono Public School District Board of Education voted April 14 to approve a revised general fund budget for the 2024–25 school year, board members said.
The revised budget reduces planned expenditures to match updated revenue estimates after a midyear review, the district’s new director of business services, Nick Tainter, told the board. Tainter said the district is accounting conservatively for a state special-education aid proration set at about a 95% payout, which he said translates to roughly a $300,000 reduction in entitlement reimbursement compared with earlier expectations.
The budget change is intended to preserve the district’s reserves while reflecting actual enrollment and spending. Tainter said the district expects roughly 20 more students than last year, which increases revenue modestly, and that staff identified about $150,000 in expenditure savings during the review. He described the package as producing a small projected increase to the district’s fund balance under the revised assumptions.
Why it matters: the board maintains a 5% unassigned fund balance policy. Tainter said the district’s projected unassigned fund balance under the revision is about 5.4%, slightly above the 5% policy level. Board discussion and Facility & Finance committee reviews informed the revisions, Tainter said.
The board approved the revised budget by roll call vote. The vote was recorded as unanimous in favor.
Board members emphasized the conservative approach in light of statewide funding uncertainty. In the meeting, board members also noted the district will continue monitoring the state reimbursement process, saying historically prorated special-education dollars have sometimes been made whole later in the legislative/audit process but the district must account conservatively in the current year budget.
The revised budget will be memorialized in the district’s audit report later this year, board materials say. The board’s approval allows staff to proceed with spending and accounting under the revised assumptions.
