Bulloch School Board Scheduled to Vote on Tentative Fiscal Year 2022 Budget on June 10

The Bulloch County Board of Education is scheduled to vote on the final adoption of a Fiscal Year 2022 Budget at its regular session meeting on June 10, beginning at 6:30 p.m. 

A tentative budget was presented to the Board on May 13, by Troy Brown, an assistant superintendent for the district, who serves as its chief financial officer and supervises its Business Services Department. The new fiscal year begins July 1.

These are highlights of the tentative Fiscal Year 2022 Budget:

• $151,313,691 in total revenue across all five budget funds (General, Special Revenue, School Nutrition, Capital Projects, and Debt Service)
• $150,251,705 in total expenditures across all five budget funds
• $1,061,986 total revenues over expenditures across all five budgets.
  • General Fund: $102,508,534 in total local, state and federal revenues; $88,999,471 in expenditures
    • $31 million in revenue from federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021; Title I, Title II A; 21st Century Communities; Title VI Part B; and Junior Reserve Officer Training Corp funds.
    • The American Rescue Act of 2021 funds will specifically be used over the next three years to fund instructional coaches and climate specialists to serve all students to address learning loss due to COVID-19 and support the district’s multi-tiered system of supports
    • A two-percent raise for all employees
  • Special Revenue Fund: Revenues $30,687,703; Expenditures $31,036,608
  • School Nutrition Fund: Revenues $5,221,835; Expenditures $4.5 million
  • Capital Projects Fund (E-SPLOST IV projects): Revenues $200,325; Expenditures $16,530,493 million
  • Debt Service Fund: Revenues $12.7 million; Expenditures $9.1 million
• No recommended increases in millage rate.
  • The Board of Education has voted to roll back (decrease) the millage rate for eight years in a row from fiscal years 2014 to 2021. The millage rate assessed for eduction on local property tax bills has decreased in that time from 9.950 mills to 8.918 mills. A tax rate of one mill represents a tax liability of one dollar per $1,000 of assessed value.
  • The 8.918 mills plus the 5.566 in local options sales tax the school district receives equals a gross millage rate of 14.484 mills.
  • Georgia Code 20-2-165 requires that board of educations levy at a minimum 14.0 effective mills (Gross Millage) in order to be eligible for the State’s Quality Based Education Equalization funds (state education funds).
• $46.5 million in projected unreserved funds (Fund Balance) by June, 30, 2022.

A complete summary of the tentative budget is below.  The public may direct comments to the Board of Education about the budget prior to their scheduled vote on June 10.

For more information about the school district’s financial resources, visit our website’s Financial Management & Efficiency area under the Business Services tab.  The Bulloch County Board of Education again received an Award of Distinction for Excellent Financial Reporting from the Georgia Department of  Audits and Accounts in April. The optimization of the district’s financial and physical resources  continues to be a key strategic goal of the school system.