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Fort Mill board hears how new state funding formula and House amendment affect local budget
Summary
District finance staff warned a proportionate‑share state funding formula and charter weighting changes reduced projected state aid; the board discussed publishing a public‑hearing budget and possible millage adjustments after a House amendment to alter virtual‑charter weights passed earlier the same day.
Miss Lordo, the district finance presenter, gave a detailed briefing on how the state’s new student‑weighting, proportionate‑share model has changed allocations for traditional districts. She told the board the most recent House Ways and Means projections reduced the new statewide appropriation to about $112 million and that the formula’s weighting for charter students had produced disproportionate shifts in funding. "We have collected total revenue of $197,145,547," she said when summarizing local revenue sources and added that salaries and benefits account for roughly 87.3% of expenditures.
Lordo described two immediate legislative developments: a House amendment offered by Rep. Bruce Bannister to reduce the virtual‑charter weighting from 0.65 to 0.35, and a directive that the state’s Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office review student weightings and report back by Dec. 1. She said the amendment passed in the House earlier that afternoon and characterized the change as a short‑term shift that would move an estimated $18 million back toward traditional districts in the statewide calculation.
Locally, Lordo said the district’s provisional estimate under the new formula would increase state revenue by about $449,731 (roughly 1.2 mills using the district’s assumptions), but she warned final numbers will depend on the 135th‑day enrollment figures the state will release this summer. She recommended publishing the budget notice for a required public hearing on the current timeline to avoid missing the statutory window, while board members discussed whether to present a worst‑case millage scenario for the public to consider.
Why this matters: The state funding formula and charter weightings alter how much state aid Fort Mill can expect; changes could force local decisions on tax millage and which programs to prioritize. The amendment passed in the House creates an opening for further negotiation in conference committee; the board planned to continue outreach to legislative conferees.
