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EASTPOINTE — At the June 26 Eastpointe Community Schools Board of Education meeting, the school board approved both the 2022-23 final amended budget and the 2023-24 original budget.
District Executive Director of Business and Operations Robert Carlesso presented both budgets during a board workshop held directly prior to the regular school board meeting. He began the workshop presenting the 2022-23 final amended budget.
“We had a budget last year at this time, which was the 2023 original budget. That was based on a number of assumptions at that time,” Carlesso said. “Now this updates it for our known activities that we have throughout the year.”
According to Carlesso’s presentation, revenues in the general fund — the district’s main fund — in the 2022-23 final amended budget were $45,879,013. Revenue is money the district receives and includes local, state and federal dollars, grants, the Macomb County enhancement millage and other sources.
“This reflects our actual number of pupils, which was 2,202. In the original budget, we estimated 2,179. When I did the original budget, I estimated $9,050 per pupil. We ended up getting $9,150 per pupil,” Carlesso said. “I was a little bit conservative. You’ll see we have a little bit of a surplus coming at the end of the year.”
Per pupil funding, also known as the foundation allowance, is what the district receives from the state for each student.
The 2022-2023 final amended budget listed the district’s expenditures at $45,371,937. Expenditures are the district’s expenses and include employee salaries and benefits; central, athletic and community services; pupil transportation; and operations and maintenance costs.
“We have an operating surplus for the year of $500,000, meaning our sources of revenue are greater than our expenditures,” Carlesso said.
The district’s fund balance in the 2022-2023 final amended budget was $11,748,930.
“It’s 25.89%. This is a really strong fund balance. We need to keep about 11% or 12% in fund equity in order to avoid borrowing,” Carlesso said.
A fund balance works like a savings account and can be used for emergencies, including loss in enrollment during the school year, or for an unexpected capital project, such as a roof replacement.
When presenting the general fund of the 2023-2024 original budget, Carlesso reminded the school board that the state has not yet determined its budget.
“We don’t know exactly what we will be receiving as far as our foundation allowance, so I had to make some assumptions,” Carlesso said. “From spring to next fall, I anticipate we’ll drop 100 pupils. Foundation allowance — I used $9,550, which is an increase of $400 over last year. There’s rumors that might be a little higher again. We’ll see.”
Because he carried over money from last year’s Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund, Carlesso said the grant money will be “about the same” for the next school year. The 2023-2024 original budget has revenues and expenditures in the same amount of $45,916,552.
During the regular school board meeting, the 2022-2023 amended budget passed with a 7-0 vote. The 2023-2024 original budget also passed 7-0. During the vote, Trustee Mary Hall-Rayford voted yes and added “with a contingency” to her vote.
