CFO says July cash down from start-of-month but attributes change to reserves and project transfers

Larry Hamill, chief financial officer for Forsyth County Schools, presented the July 2025 financial statements at the Aug. 19 board meeting, describing the month as the first of the 2026 accounting period.

Hamill said the district began the month with roughly $182,000,000 in cash and ended July with about $146,000,000, compared with about $152,000,000 at the same time last year. He attributed a large portion of the change to planned reserve transfers: the district had previously reserved about $33,000,000 to pay debt service and moved roughly $8,600,000 for the Mashburn extension into Fund 301, plus about $2,000,000 for debt-service payments due Aug. 1. He described a $10,700,000 total transfer to other funds as the combination of those movements.

Hamill also reviewed special revenue and capital-project activity: federal-year carryover activity continues through Sept. 30 and the district will officially begin FY2026 on Oct. 1; capital projects and school food services showed sizable payouts, including about $17,000,000 in capital payouts and transfers of roughly $13,000,000 from other sources to cover those costs. He noted school food-service balances and differences across elementary, middle and high school accounts and said collection rates are roughly in line or slightly ahead of schedule for the time of year.

Hamill advised board members that some SPOS/SPLOST-like accounts were largely drawn down for project payments (transcript references include "SPOS 5" and "SPOS 6" and a similarly named "spa 6" account) and that certain accounts used for debt payments are low following recent disbursements. Board members asked clarifying questions; no board action was required on the financial report.