Benton Harbor Area Schools finance chief says midyear revision erases $4 million deficit; board to vote next week

Director Brock Carter told the Benton Harbor Area Schools board that a midyear revision to the district’s 2024–25 general fund corrects earlier revenue estimates and removes a previously projected $4 million deficit.

Carter, the district director of finance, said at a work session that revenue is now estimated at $34.9 million against expenses of $34.3 million, “making our ending fund balance 21.6 million,” and that, as a result, “we will not have a deficit.” She urged the board to review the printed revision and said the board will be asked to vote at the next regular meeting.

Why it matters: Board members had been told earlier this year that the district faced a multimillion-dollar shortfall that would draw down reserves. Carter said the revision stems largely from correcting revenue entries in the original budget rather than cutting planned expenditures; total expenses remain consistent with the original plan. If the revision receives board approval, it would restore the district’s budget position and avoid drawing on the fund balance.

Details and context: Carter summarized December 2024 financials (about 56% of budgeted revenue received and roughly 44% of expenses incurred) and listed significant payments made in December, including boiler work, a math-curriculum adoption through Savas, the district’s annual audit, and expenditures related to the 21st Century ED contract. She said the high school and Fairplane East boiler work is near completion at some sites but will continue into spring when additional transformer connections and controls are installed.

Board questions and follow-up: Trustees asked whether vacancies are still counted as budgeted expenses; Carter confirmed vacancies were included in expense calculations and that filling them later would not automatically erase the projected surplus. Multiple trustees praised Carter’s work for correcting journal entries and aligning projections.

Next steps: Carter described the revision as a midyear budget adjustment and said a final, legally required budget vote will come in June to close the fiscal year. The board did not take a formal vote on the revision during the work session and scheduled the item for the next regular meeting.

Quotations: “We will not have a deficit,” Director Brock Carter said, summarizing the corrected revenue figures and the revised ending fund balance.

Ending: The board thanked Carter and the finance team for the revisions and asked staff to provide the full budget-revision packet so trustees can review line-item changes before the vote next week.