Sioux City school board adopts FY25 financial report, approves budgets and routine contracts

The Sioux City Community School District Board of Education on Nov. 20 adopted its FY25 annual financial health report and approved a suite of budget and routine business items, voting unanimously on multiple motions.

Finance director Patty Blankenship presented the unaudited FY25 annual financial health report and told the board the general fund ended the fiscal year with an $87,600,000 balance, approximately $80,100,000 of which was unassigned. Blankenship said general fund revenues totaled about $204,700,000 and expenditures about $196,800,000, producing a net increase in fund balance of roughly $6,000,000. She noted governmental funds totaled about $137,300,000 and highlighted balances in the Student Activity ($898,000), Management ($4.8 million), Sales Tax ($34.9 million), PPEL ($1.1 million) and Debt Service ($7.6 million) funds. "The general fund at 06/30/2025 had an ending fund balance of $87,600,000," Blankenship said.

After questions about budget line items — including whether "instruction" expenditures include teacher salaries and classroom materials — the board moved, seconded and approved the annual financial health report by voice vote (recorded as 7-0). The board also acknowledged a more detailed FY25 budget-to-actual expenditures report presented for informational purposes.

On budget and statutory business, the board approved a FY26 depository resolution to name official bank depositories and set maximum deposit amounts as required by Iowa Code §12C (motions recorded 7-0). The board adopted a resolution approving expenditures from the flexibility account within the general fund; a public hearing had been held earlier in the meeting and the resolution passed on a roll-call vote with all members voting in the affirmative.

The board authorized administration to submit two modified supplemental amount requests to the Iowa School Budget Review Committee. One request, related to English Learner (EL) students who have exceeded five years in the program, was for $1,394,784.68 in spending authority (not an immediate cash allocation). The district also authorized a request for $1,016,548.28 in spending authority for open-enrolled-out students not included in prior certified enrollment counts. Blankenship explained to the board these are spending-authority calculations the state performs; they increase the district’s allowable spending but do not represent additional cash on hand.

Board members acknowledged proposed FY27 PPEL and sales tax fund budgets and a two-year capital projects plan. The PPEL plan proposes roughly $1.2 million in revenues and $1.433 million in expenditures (ending PPEL fund balance estimated at about $796,000). The sales tax program shows proposed revenue near $19.9 million and a $2.0 million capital allocation for FY27 (an increase from prior years’ $1.5 million), with projects listed such as annual roof repairs, paving, a playground at Unity Elementary School and West High track repairs.

The board approved a series of routine program and contract items by unanimous votes: use of $72,091.70 in preschool initiative carryover funds for two preschool sites, construction plan reviews for Siouxland Habitat Home and Overlook View projects, an open purchase order of $50,000 for lumber for the construction trades project house, contracts supporting student learning and activities, and facility rental agreements. Most motions passed by voice vote, recorded as 7-0.

Several board members praised the district’s career academy and construction trades training when discussing the open purchase order and construction projects. The meeting closed with customary acknowledgments and an adjournment vote.

What happens next: the audit report for FY25 is expected in January and, per Blankenship, is likely to match the unaudited figures presented. The district will submit the authorized modified supplemental requests to the state budget review committee per board direction.