Operations committee proposes $226,256 surplus allocation, including phone-system upgrade and Lyman Hall runway repair

The Wallingford School District operations committee on Dec. 22 reviewed a revised December financial projection and a proposal to allocate $226,256.23 in unencumbered surplus.

Mr. Barone, presenting the district finances, said the district’s December projection shows “a $620,000 surplus,” a decline of about $927,000 from the prior month. He attributed the swing primarily to special-education tuition fluctuations, an estimated excess-cost shortfall, and increased costs for BCBAs and behavior technicians used to support students.

Mr. Barone outlined how the committee would allocate the unencumbered balance, saying the total available is $226,256.23 and proposing $51,565 for repairs to the Lyman Hall runway used for long jump and pole vault events and $135,000 for a district-wide phone system upgrade tied to security features. He recommended leaving $29,006.91 unallocated in the district’s 2% fund pending future decisions.

Barone also flagged several budget line items: transportation showed roughly $50,000 in savings tied to a canceled van, and the unemployment account currently projects a $14,000 surplus. He said the district received an initial estimate of a $357,000 excess-cost deficit and noted a subsequent state estimate that would change the surplus by roughly $40,000 but that the updated figure was not incorporated into materials previously distributed.

The committee took consensus to forward agenda items 4.1 and 4.2 related to the Munis reports and 2% fund allocations to the full board at the next meeting.

What’s next: The proposed allocations will be moved to the board for formal action at the upcoming meeting; the remainder of the 2% fund will remain unallocated until the committee or board identifies a use.