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Superintendent warns Title I cuts and PERS cost could erode state funding boost
Summary
Echo SD 5 superintendent told the board enrollment is steady overall but the district expects a large cut to Title I federal funds and said PERS rate increases are consuming more than half of the state's education funding increase.
The superintendent told the board the district expects a substantial reduction in federal Title I funds next year, and that PERS retirement-rate increases are consuming a large share of the state's funding bump.
"We only get about $56,000 right now as it is from title 1 funds," the superintendent (speaker 2) said, adding that the state uses census-based poverty counts to calculate Title I allocations and the district has been notified of a substantial cut. He said the district had not yet been given a precise dollar amount but that "we're probably gonna be at least 50% less." The superintendent also said PERS increases are "eating up over 50% of the increase in funding from the state."
Board members discussed implications for staffing and programming and were told that programs currently supported by Title I (the transcript indicates the funding pays for part of one staff position) would need to be shifted into the general fund if reductions materialize. The superintendent framed the fiscal uncertainty as a driver for careful budgeting ahead of the next cycle.
