Board approves $2.63 million in expenditures, reviews fund balance and bond‑rating options

The New London School District board approved routine expenditures totaling $2,635,458.89 and recorded receipts of $252,550.47, then spent substantial time reviewing financial indicators in the districts continuous improvement plan.

Chair (speaker 1) called for the motion to approve the expenditures as listed for 08/07/2025; the motion was seconded and the board adopted the expenditures by roll‑call vote. The board also recorded receipts from the same date for $252,550.47.

On the continuous improvement plan, district leadership reported an unaudited fund balance of $4,590,000, equaling approximately 14% of the operating budget. "Unaudited fund balance of 4,590,000 representing 14% of our operating budget," Scott Black (speaker 4) told the board, noting the district had increased fund balance by about one percentage point from the prior year.

Board members then debated whether to pay roughly $3,000–$3,500 to request a bond‑rating update when the district is currently debt‑free. One member summarized the concern: paying for a rating now could be unnecessary until debt issuance is likely. Several members proposed suspending the bond‑rating indicator and instead weighting fund-balance metrics more heavily. The board reached consensus to suspend the bond indicator until a bond issuance is anticipated.

The director of business services (speaker 2) reminded the board the budget hearing is scheduled for Sept. 10 and encouraged members to forward items they want included in the budget booklet that will be made available to the public. "If you have anything that you would hope to see or want questions on or clarification, please let me know," he said.

What happens next: Administration will continue preparing the budget booklet for the Sept. 10 hearing and will adjust internal reporting to reflect the boards direction to deprioritize the bond-rating metric while the district remains debt-free.