Warren County school leaders press to lock annual carryover funds into school capital account

Warren County School Board members and members of the Board of Supervisors used a March 18 joint work session to press for changes to how school funds are categorized and transferred, saying clearer rules are needed to ensure predictable money for capital projects.

Board members described a hybrid approach they favor: move the school operating budget to lump-sum funding (giving the school board greater flexibility to manage within the operating fund) while preserving two ring-fenced categories — a CIP account for one-time capital work and a textbook fund — that would remain identified and reported. Administrators proposed a monthly reporting cadence so supervisors can track inflows and outflows for those two categories without forcing frequent formal transfer requests.

The discussion centered on a proposed carryover-funds memorandum of understanding that would create a regular, audited transfer of end-of-year unexpended school funds to the CIP account. Participants said county audit delays have kept carryovers from being returned in recent years and stressed that for capital planning they need regular, predictable transfers rather than occasional discretionary appropriations. Finance staff provided historical transfer amounts presented at the meeting (2018–19: $546,821; 2020–21: $267,200; 2021–22: $973,000; a later year cited at $215,477), and speakers characterized likely near-term carryover receipts as typically in the low hundreds of thousands.

Several board members urged tightening the draft MOU language so that transfers are required rather than optional. One school-board member requested changing wording from allowing a “portion” of funds to be transferred to language stating that carryover savings “shall” be transferred to the CIP, to avoid intermittent or discretionary treatment. Supervisors acknowledged fiscal pressure across county functions and recommended adding clear timing (for example, annual transfers tied to audit completion) and routine reporting to make the arrangement workable for both bodies.

Speakers also flagged operational details that affect how money is tracked: state-designated categories (instruction, pupil transportation, administration, operations and maintenance, facilities, food service, contingency/reserve, debt service) and the existence of separate funds for textbook and food-service accounting. Finance staff explained that some purchases (for example, buses) are recorded under pupil transportation categories even if funded from capital accounts, so careful coding and clear reporting rules will be needed.

The board agreed to refine the MOU language and to return the item to the school board’s April meeting for action, with the expectation that supervisors would consider the changes at their next meeting. Administrators said more precise timing for transfers should be written into the MOU (for example, linking transfer dates to county audit certification) and that a modest, predictable annual flow of carryover funds would materially help planned roof and bus replacement schedules.