Ten Sleep school board discusses preliminary budget outlook

TEN SLEEP – The Ten Sleep school board met in a special session on Wednesday, April 29, to announce the district will be finishing the year on its adapted learning plan, and to discuss the preliminary budget for the 2020-21 school year.

With no preliminary report from the Wyoming Department of Education (WDE), it is harder for Business Manager Connie Gay to predict revenues for the next year. She told the board that she hopes to have a better estimate for the budget in May, when the school board is set to approve a preliminary budget.

Gay fears that local revenue may fall slightly short in this year’s budget due to fears that some residents may not pay or may delay payment of property taxes, due to the novel coronavirus 2019. She said she believes that the funding will be made up in the fall through a tax shortfall grant. Gay is unsure if they will receive the $879,000 they are supposed to receive in April, May and June, so cash flow may be a slight issue over the summer.

The district is anticipating a 30% increase in property insurance. Gay said that this is a nationwide increase, with other states seeing as much as a 100% increase. Overall, insurance is expected to increaseof about $120,000, but with the elimination of the instructional facilitator position in April, the district is expected to save about $76,000.

Gay told the board that the governor and management council have mentioned budget cuts potentially coming.

The general expenditures and revenue are projected at this time to equal around $3,395,376 at this time, but a final budget is not set to be approved until July, when more is known on state funding impacts from COVID-19.

Superintendent Jimmy Phelps expressed concern that the new school design budget approved in the legislative budget in February may be in doubt as funding is expected to be impacted greatly due to the state’s current economic situation.

Adrienne Forshee was hired as the new agriculture teacher for the high school and middle school. Her contract will start this summer.