Middletown schools report $919,000 projected surplus, warn of adult-education grant cut and rising legal fees

The City of Middletown Board of Education’s budget committee heard Oct. 14 that the district projects a $919,000 surplus for the year but faces several budget risks, including high legal spending and a potential cut to the state adult education grant.

"The surplus is made up of four different categories," said Natalie Forbes, the district’s executive director of finance, listing combined salaries, employee benefits, purchased services and supplies. Forbes said the employee-benefit surplus stems from city-provided benefit cost estimates that were higher than the city’s final confirmed costs.

The district’s legal fees are already at about $114,613 through Sept. 30, Forbes said, roughly 50% of the $230,000 appropriated for the year. "That is an area to watch," she said.

Forbes also warned of a likely reduction to the adult education grant. "On a one-time basis the state was going to reduce its contribution to the adult ed grant by 12.85%, which initially was thought to be $177,000. It’s now a little bit more like $200,000," she said. The district’s adult education leader, Mr. D'Amato, has worked with district leadership to identify cost reductions and other funding options while the state may consider additional action in a special session.

Board members asked whether the closing of the Old Saybrook satellite site was accounted for; Forbes said that consolidation is part of the remediation and has produced rental and utility savings. She cautioned, however, that she did not have a final net remediation total and that the final grant figure could change depending on the outcome of any state action.

The committee also reviewed nine budget transfers discussed at the prior board meeting. Most were routine transfers for instructional and administrative needs; one transfer tied to after-school string instruction was offset by a newly secured grant and reallocated to support special education.

Forbes reported the district’s final 2024–25 carryover figure as $485,035.93 and said likely uses include special education, legal fees, adult education and any unfunded mandates that arise during the remainder of the fiscal year.

The committee did not record a formal roll-call vote on approval of the minutes or on end-of-meeting motions in the transcript.

A copy of the presentation and the detailed transfer list were referenced during the discussion and will be available with the board packet.