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Board reviews finances, encumbrances and options to pay off land loan
Summary
The district’s finance presentation outlined lower year-to-date revenue driven by federal grant timing, listed multiple purchase orders and encumbrances (generator, buses, HVAC, roofing), and discussed paying off a remaining land loan to reduce interest costs.
At the Poteau Public Schools board meeting, the district finance presenter reviewed month-to-date and year-to-date finances and walked trustees through encumbrances and planned purchases. The presenter told the board that general-fund revenue is down compared with last April largely because some federal funds arrived on a different schedule; expenditures are also down compared with last April because several large purchases were incurred in the prior year.
The report itemized purchases and encumbrances across funds: a 2024 Kia, two activity buses, two route buses (including two electric route buses), an 80-kilowatt diesel generator purchased in April, mentoring-grant supplies (PO 1045), janitorial supplies (PO 1048), and multiple POs connected to athletics and summer-school needs. The finance presenter said the district is seeking approval of building-fund POs for PES roof work and weight-room items and flagged PO 29 to First National Bank of Fort Smith that represents the remaining balance on a land loan the district would like to pay off to save future interest.
Addressing the board’s questions about loan sizing and payments, the finance presenter said an illustrative annual payment figure is about "$141,001.41" for one of the instruments under discussion. Superintendent Jennifer discussed two financing instruments in the district’s narrative: a $1,500,000 note (described in the meeting as a grant or loan instrument) and a $2,000,000 facility instrument; board members expressed interest in retiring the $1.5 million balance sooner to reduce interest expense.
Facilities work was described as progressing: a new backup generator has been commissioned, weight-room insulation is installed and awaiting interior work and HVAC/electrical, new lockers for the 7–8 center have arrived, and demolition/renovation for public restrooms at the football field house is scheduled to meet a June 20 target. The board did not adopt additional borrowing during the meeting; the discussion focused on cashflow, encumbrances, capital projects and scheduling.
