Schools get part-time psychologist

The Cedar Grove-Belgium School District’s tax levy will increase this year.

Director of Business Services Kris DeBruine warned the School Board this month of the expected bump and cited a couple of reasons.

The Community Service Fund (Fund 80) will increase since Athletic Director Scott Parsons moved from part time to full time with the advent of recreation programs, she said.

“We’re going to see an uptick in taxes next year there,” DeBruine said.

State aid is another factor.

“The tax levy is going to go up. I don’t know yet by how much, but our equalization aid went down by almost $200,000,” DeBruine said.

She said she isn’t building many expenses into the budget until the board determines if it wants to tax the maximum amount allowed according to the state’s revenue limit system. The board scheduled a special meeting to discuss the budget at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 28.

DeBruine provided a budget summary that showed the district’s fund balance — an account used mostly for emergencies and unplanned expenses — is at $3.6 million, or 27.6% of expenditures. That is in line with auditors’ recommendation of 25% to 30%.

“That’s really good,” DeBruine said.

Referencing the district’s recently completed annual audit, DeBruine said the district is financially healthy. There were no issues with policies and procedures aside from not always getting purchase orders before buying items, which is a violation of board policy.

“We have to clean that up,” she said.

The district’s tax rate for the 2016-17 school year was $9.83 per $1,000 of equalized value, down from $10.03 the year before. This year’s rate will be determined in fall.