The Appoquinimink School District may avoid taking an interest-free loan from the state to help fill a gap in its budget.
At a meeting Tuesday, the district’s Board of Education got a look at a preliminary amended budget for this year. While that budget been fully vetted by the district’s Financial Advisory Committee, it is a lean one, built to keep a tight rein on Appo’s finances.
Earlier this year, the district learned a series of accounting errors led to a multimillion dollar shortfall.
Compounding the problem is the recently-resolved uncertainty over property taxes in the state’s largest county. A Delaware Supreme Court decision last week upheld the move to charge different tax rates for residential versus other property owners.
Property tax bills will go out this month, and Superintendent Matthew Burrows says it all comes down to how quickly those bills get paid, noting many bills are paid by mortgage companies.
“If they don't release the funds that are held up in escrow right now, we will have to take out the interest-free loan to pay our first portion of the charter school bill," he said.
The Board of Education also got another update as the district continues its recovery from a financial slip-up this year.
The fallout from the string of accounting errors led to a number of recommendations for improvement from the State Auditor and independent consultants hired by the district.
At Tuesday's meeting, Burrows addressed eight of those, telling board members that implementing six of those is already underway.
One key change is revamping the way its Financial Advisory Committee operates. That body looks at budgets and financial reports before the Board of Education. Finance Director Alleesa Stewart told board members the committee is finding its footing quickly.
“There's been a lot of restructuring, re-implementation, understanding of what the role of the FAC is, with them looking at the methodology of how we do things," she said. "That really has been the defining line, with education and training.”
Board members also got some good news. New enrollment has made the district the second-largest in the state. Meanwhile, the district is currently short 25 teachers, which Burrows says is the lowest number in five years.
