SCBOE to hold second public hearing for FY20 budget, Tuesday

The Stephens County Board of Education met on Thursday for the first public reading of Fiscal Year 2020’s Budget.

According to Stephens County School Superintendent Bryan Dorsey, the millage rate will remain the same as FY19, at 16.8 mils.

Dorsey says residents will see a very small decrease in their property taxes.

“It will be our recommendation to hold the millage rate at 16.8 mils, that’s technically a tax decrease,” Dorsey said. “You’ll see the final numbers in our July meeting when I would like to recommend the budget to you. We have to have a couple of budget hearings to follow state rules. We could actually roll up .013 percent to hold the same taxes, but while the millage rate is staying the same it’s technically an incredible small tax decrease.”

According to Dorsey, the tentative budget that was approved during their regular scheduled meeting in May, is identical to this proposed Budget they are considering now.

The budget is just over $36.3 million – an increase of less than 2 percent over FY19’s budget.

Dorsey says the budget shows the school district spending less money; despite, the State approved $3-thousand salary increase for Certified positions, and the local 2-percent salary increase for Classified positions.

“The salary schedule that the state board has put out that includes the $3-thousand for all certified positions, and then, as the board is aware, we are proposing, in this budget, a 2-percent raise to all classified too. Now there is no particular salary schedule for the classified positions, and we are certainly above the reimbursement rate for the state. But, as part of us doing what we need to do here, they’re still getting that 2-percent. So everybody in the school system will see one or the other,” he said.

However, because the board will not have a budget for FY2020 adopted by June 30, the school board will have to approve monthly spending resolutions, each month, until the budget for 2020 is adopted.

School board members are expected to adopt the FY20 budget during their meeting on Tuesday.

WNEG News will continue to follow this story as additional information is released.