Ferguson-Florissant Board Gets Info on 2012-13 Budget

received its first glimpse of the 2012-13 school year budget and approved $5.8 million in expenditures for capital improvements Wednesday night.

Chief Financial Officer Mick Willis presented both financial items. He emphasized for the budget that it was just a working draft that would change in-between now and the final presentation in June.

Willis said that the working budget showed that the fiscal year, which begins July 1, could start with $46.4 million and end with $39.8 million. For the next school year, he said it’s estimated the district would bring in approximately more than $130 million and spend more than $136 million.

Willis said that while the district's reserves and spending could be a concern for the board, he assured it would be provided with a balanced budget. Willis said a number of adjustments would be made in regards to revenue and other budget parts, but he wanted to update the board on the budget progress.

Bond issue money "keeps things going"

The board unanimously approved a proposal to spend $5.8 million of a bond issue for capital improvement projects in the district.

Willis assured the board that the projects would be for maintenance and no drastic changes would be made.

“This is just to keep things going,” he said to the board.

The bond issue is Proposition A, a $25 million no tax-rate-increase bond issue, which was passed in August 2010 by voters.

According to a St. Louis Post-Dispatch article, the district bought bonds to pay for facility and technology upgrades. No tax money is needed are used, and the bonds can’t be used to pay for items such as salaries and benefits, transportation, utilities, textbooks or other supplies.

This is the second full year for the bond.