A proposed, preliminary Fiscal Year 24 budget for the Kenai Peninsula Brough School District was approved by the KPBSD School Board and now forwarded to the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly.
The KPBSD School Board budget attempts to balance the district’s budget for 2023-24, addressing a projected $13.1 million with spending adjustments and cuts, using the projected remaining balance of the COVID-19 education funding, Elementary and Secondary Emergency Relief (ESSER III) funds and transfers for the FY24 Preliminary General Fund budget.
The KPBSD School Board submitted budget is built on the full-funding formula from the State of Alaska estimated at about $54.8 million, which includes about $12.8 million in-kind services and about $41.9 million in appropriations.
Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Peter Micciche stated the Borough’s full intention to fund “to the cap”.
“We’ve committed to funding to the cap this year. It means, we’re giving the maximum allowable from the Kenai Peninsula Borough which there’s a range. There’s a lower range in an upper range we’ve agreed to the upper range, they obviously have some funding gaps and we know that they have some challenges.”
Micciche also elaborated on the upcoming process to formulate the Fiscal 24 budget including discussions on proposed cuts; which include $1.1 million in funding in the support staff category which includes positions such as pool managers and theater technicians.
“We do fund a large proportion of the Kenai Peninsula School District budget because of the fact that we fund them we have a voice. We represent 60,000 people in the Kenai Peninsula Borough. We represent those students and their parents who have interests and other community members that use school facilities, and they are supporters of schools because, of some of those services like pools and theaters.”
FY24 Preliminary Budget (supplied from FY24 Preliminary Budget presented at Finance Update Work Session)
Revenue
State of Alaska revenue projections for FY24 were created using $5,960 as the Base Student Allocation (BSA) in the State of Alaska Foundation Funding Formula. The BSA includes a $30 increase over FY23 BSA amount, which had remained the same since FY17 at $5,930.
The student enrollment projection of 8,450 for FY24, listed in the Five-Year Enrollment Projection document, was used in the Foundation Formula to calculate estimated state revenue.
State revenues include $71,584,258 for Foundation Funding, $275,602 for Quality Schools funding, and on-behalf payments of $7,132,899 for a total State funding of $78,992,759.
Administration has budgeted KPB support in the amount of $54,753,114. In-kind services are budgeted at the same level as FY23 of $12,822,896 and $41,930,218 as appropriation.
Other budgeted revenues include e-rate, interest earnings, and miscellaneous for a total of $1,180,000.
Total General Fund Revenue available for FY24 is estimated to be $134,925,873.
>Expenditures
The FY24 preliminary expenditure budget was developed using the same staffing formulas as FY23. Expenditure projections for salaries include step increases for current employees. Adjustments were made to healthcare based on the current number of employees that have coverage, opted out and recommendations for contribution rates by the District’s Health Care broker. Salaries and benefits comprise approximately 80% of total expenditures.
Adjustments to instructional and custodial budgets were made based on a formula that includes projected enrollment and building size. Utilities were budgeted using a three-year average.
Included in the primary budget is a transfer to Pupil Transportation of $550,000 and Extra-Curricular travel in the amount of $145,000 for total transfers of $695,000. The total of all expenditures and transfers for the FY24 Preliminary General Fund budget is $145,813,894.
Since projected revenues total $134,925,873 and projected expenditures are $145,813,894, the Deficit between projected revenues and expenditures is $(10,888,021).
Using the projected remaining balance of the COVID-19 education funding, Elementary and Secondary Emergency Relief (ESSER III) funds in the amount of $6,439,215 reduces the deficit to $(4,448,806).
Using a portion of the unassigned fund balance of $821,581 and other expenditure cuts that include personnel reductions that include Director of Communications, Student Support services coordinator, recruitment specialist, increase HS PTR +3, increase MS PTR +2, theater techs, pool managers, student success liaisons and athletic directors. In addition to the personnel reductions other cuts include a 10% cut to school supply budgets, board meals, extra-curricular travel funds, extra-curricular safety equipment and extra-curricular hockey ice support.
The budget reductions and use of fund balance total $4,448,806.
The FY24 preliminary expenditure budget and transfers total $135,747,454.
Use of Fund Balance
Revenue from all sources for the FY24 Preliminary General Fund Budget totals $134,925,873 and since expenditures and transfers total $135,747,454, it is necessary to use fund balance in the amount of $821,581, as previously discussed by the Board. The amount of unassigned fund balance available at the end of FY22 was $2,354,271.
