Fayette County school system approves tentative budget

The Fayette County Board of Education gave preliminary approval to a $228.8 million budget for the coming fiscal year at its May 24 meeting. Chief Financial Officer Tom Gray walked the board through the projected income and expenses for FY2022, which begins July 1 and ends June 30, 2022.

The General Fund budget, 65.7% of which are instructional costs, would be $228,796,055; debt service would be another $6.6 million, special revenue funds (which include nutrition and after-school programs) represent another $34.2 million and the workers’ compensation fund is $1.5 million. No cost-of-living raises are included for employees, but some step increases are planned. Maintenance and operations will constitute 7.2% of the expenses.

Expected revenue for the next school year is $223.3 million; with state funding reduced, Fayette plans to use $5.47 million from its fund balance. Another public hearing on the budget will be held at 2 p.m. on June 14 before the board takes a final vote.