Royal School Board approves 2019-2020 budget

ROYAL CITY — The Royal School District expects to spend over $25 million for the 2019-2020 school year. The school board approved the budget for the upcoming school year during a regular meeting on Monday, July 29. The meeting was re-scheduled from July 22 due to a lack of a quorum.

Royal School District Business Manager Greg Pike told the board that every dollar goes into and is spent out of five different funds - general fund, capital projects fund, debt service fund, associated student body fund and transportation vehicle fund.

The district expects its total revenue and expenditures out of the general fund to be $25,652,723. It also expects to spend $15 million out of the Capital Projects Fund. The ASB fund expenditures are expected to be $311,850. The district expects to put $1.44 million to paying off debt and to spend $416,000 out of the transportation vehicle fund. The transportation fund is the only fund expected to have a $0 balance at the end of the school year. At the end of the next school year, the district expects to carry over $3.1 million in the general fund, the amount it carried over from the 2018-2019 school year.

“We do try to keep a conservative approach to our budgeting process,” said Pike.

The district uses the historical averages of the different grade levels to project student enrollment. For the upcoming school year, they are making a conservative estimate of 1,699 students. Over the past ten years, enrollment has gone up 235 students, with a seven student drop from the 2017-2018 school year. This does not include running start students.

It is estimated that it will cost $14,158,509 for the regular instruction, or teaching, of the district’s children for the next school year. When other forms of instruction, such as vocational and special education, are figured in, the district will spend $25,652,723.

Rachal Pinkerton may be reached via email at rpinkerton@suntribunenews.com.