Council passes budget, caps school funding
The Russellville City Council passed an operating budget for the new fiscal year during a special called meeting Friday night.
The council passed a balanced budget, but in doing so, placed a cap on the amount of funding the city allocates to the school system.
The city has historically given 38.33 percent of a three-cent sales tax to the schools. That figure accounted for about $1.4 million this past year, city officials said.
In the budget passed by the council Friday, the city will give the school system $1 million in 2010-2011.
Mayor Troy Oliver said the city does not have the sales tax revenue or reserves to continue funding the system at the same level they have in the past, but he believes the one-cent sales tax passed by county voters in June will keep the system from hurting.
“With the $1 million we are going to give them plus the $800,000 they receive from the one-cent sales tax, they will be getting more than if we had passed a one-cent sales tax increase,” Oliver said.
The city discussed passing a one-cent sales tax increase in 2009, but did not do so. County voters opted to impose a temporary tax in June that provides about $800,000 for the city schools and $1.2 million for the county school system.
City and school officials did not meet prior to the passage of the city’s budget, though council members expressed a desire to do so during Monday night’s regular meeting. Superintendent Don Cox sent council members an email asking to meet with them on Oct. 7 to share the system’s financial information with them.
“There is no way that the money the city gives us and the money from the tax will get us through proration,” Cox said Friday morning before the council’s action.
“Other school systems are trying to find funds and we are wrestling to hold on to ours. All we want is an opportunity to sit down and meet with the mayor and council and explain our condition, but that hasn’t happened.”
Cox said that by capping the school funding, the city would basically be taking money away that voters gave the schools in June.
“The community stepped up and passed the one-cent sales tax and now the city is basically taking it away,” Cox said. “I think that by this time next year, we will be borrowing money to make payroll. The people in this community are so proud of their school system, it seems like it should be funded the way it needs to be.”
Oliver said the council has asked all department heads to keep a watchful eye on their budgets and to manage overtime and all expenses.
“We have had to make cuts across the board,” he said.
Councilman Lanny Hubbard said that all decisions affecting school funding are difficult.
“But when you look at it, there’s nothing we can do,” he said. “It’s operating with what we have. We have to look at the city as a whole, the police department, fire department and street departments all have to be funded, too.”
The council said they would still meet with school officials although they moved ahead in passing their budget.
Council members Jeff Masterson and William Nale were not at Friday’s meeting.
