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Moorhead board backs MSBA resolution seeking flexibility to reallocate long‑term facilities funds
Summary
The board approved submitting a legislative resolution to MSBA asking for statutory flexibility to transfer certain LTFM funds into other district priorities after maintaining minimum fund balances; staff said transfers would occur after fiscal‑year close with auditor confirmation.
The Moorhead Area Public Schools board voted Sept. 8 to submit a proposed legislative resolution to the Minnesota School Boards Association delegate assembly asking for expanded flexibility to reallocate dollars in long-term facilities maintenance (LTFM) and related funds.
Superintendent Doctor Lunick presented a four‑year projection showing dollars that could be available to transfer after meeting minimum fund‑balance protections. He described an approach that would leave a reserve (the presentation cited $800,000 as a minimum fund-balance target for LTFM) and allow transfers of amounts above that floor only after auditors confirm year-end balances. Lunick and board members discussed examples of permissible uses (school safety and security projects) and legislative pathways — the superintendent said prior bills in the House and Senate advanced partially but did not become omnibus law last session.
Board members asked for clarification about the mechanism and protections for other restricted funds; Lunick said transfers would not be allowed from funds that could not meet their minimum balances and that the transfer resolution would be enacted alongside the audit for transparency. A board member moved and the board seconded a motion to approve and submit the Moorhead School Board’s proposed fund‑reallocation authority resolution to MSBA’s 2025 delegate assembly; the motion carried.
The presentation noted possible legislative language to treat large school safety projects (over $100,000) under health-and-safety provisions, mirroring prior changes made for roofs, and outlined the rationale for seeking state-level flexibility rather than relying solely on local bond capacity.
Next steps: staff will submit the resolution to MSBA for consideration at the delegate assembly and continue outreach to area legislators to explain the district’s proposal.
