Post Falls School District trustees approve budget

POST FALLS — The Post Falls School District Board of Trustees approved Monday night a total budget of $47 million for the upcoming fiscal year.

A 4-0 vote, with Trustee Dave Paul absent, was cast in favor of the budget, which is required to be submitted to the state in the month of June, during its regular meeting. Prior to the vote, District Business Manager Sid Armstrong told trustees funding from the state is now approximately equal to the funding the district received in 2009.

"Our goal has been to recover from the Great Recession and we are on our way to doing that," said Superintendent Jerry Keane. "We are very appreciative of the increase in funding from the state. Obviously the 2009 budget is a bunch of years ago, so it may not be the perfect place to be. But we're on the right path and we're hopeful we can be in a strong fiscal position."

According to Armstrong, the district's general operations fund is budgeted around $34.4 million, with the remaining portions of the total budget coming from federal funding and funds obtained through a public bond two years ago. The majority of the district's funding, he added, is based on enrollment projections, which he estimated will be just over 5,700 next year.

"We are probably on the cusp of a growth spurt again," Armstrong said. "But, for next year, we are not projecting much growth."

Armstrong told the board that, for the second year in a row, the district will not increase taxes, and will levy the exact same amount in taxes as it did last year.

Negotiations between the district and the Post Falls Education Association, which represents the district's teachers, on salary and benefits for the upcoming year have just begun, Keane said. One of the biggest components of the negotiations, according to Armstrong, will be how increases to health and dental insurance costs are handled.

"The teachers' negotiations kind of dictate all things because school districts are really all about teachers and kids," Keane said. "I imagine there will be an increase (in wages) because the state appropriated approximately 3 percent more in salary money. I'm assuming at the end of the day there will be but, as of now, there is no set amount."

Armstrong also reported to the board that the district's fund balance is just above 3 percent, which is at the bottom of the range set by the board.

"Based on where we've been the last few years, I'm happy to say we are there because it's better than where we were for sure," Armstrong said.

In other board news, longtime Trustee Donagene Turnbow announced she was resigning from her position effective immediately. Turnbow, who has served on the board since 1995, told fellow trustees the decision was made in spite of mixed emotions.

"I've been on the board for a little over 20 years," Turnbow said. "It's been the best 20 years of my life."