The financial picture for students and taxpayers in DeKalb County likely will be painted with millions of dollars more in red ink next year, school board members were told Thursday.
Pension and insurance costs are projected to rise while tax proceeds plummet as property values -- what officials call the tax digest -- remain in free fall.
"We are looking at about a 5 percent decline in the tax digest for 2013," said Susan Hurst, the interim finance chief for the school district. "This equates to a loss of $20 million."
The grim news was compounded by other trends.
The state may trim $2 million in subsidies next year, Hurst said. Meanwhile, DeKalb expects its contributions to the teacher retirement system to rise $6 million while payments into a health care insurance fund go up $10 million.
There was some good news: A shortfall in the construction budget isn't as big as initially thought.
Officials reported last week they had discovered a deficit in the last Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax program. The five-year, penny-on-the-dollar tax was expected to bring in $513 million for new buildings and renovations before expiring this summer.
The school system had issued $300 million in bonds to expedite construction, but failed to plan for the interest on that debt. Last week, Superintendent Cheryl Atkinson notified the school board the unpaid bills came to $26 million.
To cover that and other shortfalls and cost overruns totaling $41.3 million, she asked the board to cut $33 million from dozens of pending projects and to borrow $8 million from emergency and contingency accounts.
Since then, officials learned that nearly $5 million of the debt actually was paid within the past year, bringing the shortfall to $36.5 million. The school board is still facing the recommended cuts, but officials won't have to raid the rainy day funds for as much money.
The cuts involve scores of schools and include everything from running tracks and wheelchair ramps to air conditioning systems and toilets. The school board discussed the cuts Thursday, but postponed a decision on them until Monday.
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