The Spearfish School District superintendent told the board that a recent Black Hills Pioneer article showing a 39.8% increase in K–12 public school spending between 2020 and 2024 was accurate numerically but misleading in context.

“The 39.8% figure is a metric primarily inflated by a $120,000,000 of one‑time federal payment, ESSER, and non property‑tax supported increases,” Superintendent (Speaker 8) said, adding that enterprise funds such as food service and drivers‑education, and capital projects drove much of the headline number. He said the district used about $2.5 million from the CTE project’s $15 million total in ways that affect accounting across years.

The superintendent gave a breakdown intended to isolate property‑tax‑supported spending: he said general fund expenditures rose about 20.4%, capital outlay about 25.8% and special education about 23.9% — lower than the 39.8% aggregate headline. He told the board those figures reflect temporary federal funds and capital‑project accounting rather than a sustained, uniform increase in property‑tax burdens.

Board members discussed inflation and state aid trends. Presiding board member (Speaker 2) noted that cumulative inflation over the period (~21%) aligns roughly with the spending increases in those locally supported funds. The superintendent also criticized rollbacks of a temporary sales‑tax increase implemented after the Blue Ribbon task force, saying the district has foregone $32 million in potential revenue over the past decade because of statutory and policy changes the state enacted.

The superintendent warned that the governor’s proposed 0% K–12 increase in the next budget would effectively be a cut for districts facing rising utilities, insurance and other costs. He said state aid increases reported by the governor include one‑time funding and grant programs.

The board took no formal fiscal action at the meeting on the basis of the superintendent’s remarks; the presentation was informational and intended to clarify the district’s accounting and revenue drivers for local taxpayers.