Even though the Hall County School District is proposing an increase in expenditures for the coming fiscal year - and that increase will mean an uptick in taxes - no public comments were made at the first public hearing on the budget Monday night.
School Superintendent Will Schofield told board members the proposed budget includes an additional $7.5 million in expenditures for FY 2017, most of that for employee pay raises.
Schofield distributed a basic outline of the increases:
- 2.5 % raises - $4,000,000
- Step raises - $1,500,000
- Health insurance premiums - $1,035,000
- Additional teaching positions - $1,000,000
The school board announced on May 27 its intention to hold the millage rate at 18.8 mills instead of using the rollback rate of 18.599 mills. Board members have discussed at recent meetings their disappointment in the tax digest, and Schofield reiterated the issue.
"In spite of disappointment over the way the formula worked out for us at the state and also with anemic growth in the local tax digest of only 1.5% this year, this Board has stepped forward and said that this will be the year that we try to put as much into employee compensation as we possibly can," said Schofield.
Schofield also noted that the school system is growing again, and that means more teachers will need to be hired.
"We anticipate picking up 200-400 students next year," Schofield said.
Schofield said the district is fortunate that it will have a General Fund balance of $26 million in reserves; $3 million or more will likely be used to fulfill the needs of the new budget.
Complete budget details can be found on the Hall County School District website.
Final adoption of the budget is scheduled for June 27, following two public hearings that same day. The first hearing is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. and the second at 6 p.m. Both will be held at school board headquarters on Green Street in Gainesville.
