Grayslake District 46 delves into budget details
Grayslake Elementary District 46 board members received some financial lessons Wednesday night.
Chief School Business Official Todd Covault kicked off the evening by presenting details for the 2011-12 budget, which is up about $1 million from last year. He was followed by Lake County tax extension administrator Kipp Wilson, whose presentation included data on property values.
District 46 has a budget of about $48.5 million. Of that total, a little more than $30 million will go toward employee salaries and benefits, a ratio that’s typical for an Illinois school district.
When asked by board member Michael Carbone if he identified any cuts since starting as business boss in July, Covault said much of the budget already was committed because of staffing levels established for 2011-12. Board member Keith Surroz then said staffing nay have to be addressed at some point.
Covault said there is some good news on the revenue side. For example, he said, the state has paid all but $90,000 of $1.7 million it had owed the district in July. He said it may be a sign the money the state is receiving from an income tax hike is working its way to local governments.
“The state has made huge progress,” Covault said.
Covault said the district has $211,812 of $733,028 it received last year under the federal Education Jobs Fund initiative. The stimulus program was pitched as a way to save education jobs.
District 46 earmarked $435,000 of the $733,028 for teacher and administrator bonus that were allowed under the federal program. Covault said the $211,812 that remains must be spent in the 2011-12 academic season.
Meanwhile, Wilson as part of his presentation said Lake County property values have declined by nearly 7 percent since 2008. That trend is expected to continue for the next couple of years.
However, Wilson said, dropping property values don’t correspond to reduced taxes. Local governments still levy to get what money is deemed necessary to operate.
“If your property value declines slightly and everyone else’s goes down more, it’s like yours went up,” Wilson said.