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Blue Ridge Unified holds public hearing on revised December budget; no formal action taken
Summary
District presenters outlined a December budget revision, citing enrollment decline, a roughly $2 million carry forward, exhausted federal COVID relief funds, delayed state K–3 reading funds and a Prop 301 teacher payment of $9,200 to qualifying educators.
Blue Ridge Unified School District No. 32 held a public hearing on its revised December budget, during which district staff described adjustments caused by enrollment changes, state funding delays and the end of federal COVID relief funds. The governing board did not take a formal vote during the hearing.
Kimberly, the district presenter, told the governing board that the district prepares a December budget revision each year to reflect changes in current-year funding. "This is our revised budget for December," Kimberly said, calling the revision "just our normal revision that we do." She said the district’s ADM (average daily membership) is adjusted at this time of year and the district also completes its AFR (Annual Financial Report).
Kimberly said the district carried forward about $2,000,000 this year—roughly the same as the previous year but down by about $100,000—and that carry forward is being used to help cover salary costs now that ESSER and other COVID-era funding have ended. "That carry forward is crucial this year because we no longer have ESSER funding and or any, COVID money," she said.
She described several specific budget line changes: the district’s capital budget is down by about $29,000, and the district’s Classroom Site Fund (commonly called Prop 301 in Arizona) allocation increased by roughly $132,000 compared with the adopted budget. Kimberly said the district was able to offer "our teachers $9,200 in Prop 301 money," and that qualifying teachers would receive the first third of that payment in the next payroll, with the remaining payments tied to completion of program requirements in June.
Kimberly also said some state funding remained unresolved. She said the state education department had not yet approved K–3 reading plans or budgets and that a software glitch prevented the department from uploading the district’s free-and-reduced-lunch rate and gifted-rate data into the funding formula. "Nobody has gotten that funding yet," she said, adding that the district expects to receive the money once the state fixes the software issue.
Board members did not vote on the revision at the hearing. Governing Board President opened and closed the public hearing and invited questions; board member Diana had no questions. "We don't have to have a motion to close because it's just a public hearing," the president said.
The presentation emphasized budgetary pressures from declining enrollment and the need to use carry-forward reserves to smooth salary costs over the next two years. No decisions, motions or formal votes were recorded during the hearing.
Looking ahead, Kimberly noted that some state funding adjustments remain pending and that those adjustments could increase the district’s revenue once the state approves K–3 plans and corrects the software upload issue. The board did not schedule or record follow-up action during the hearing.
