Kingsville Superintendent Kevin Coleman gave an overview of the 2006-2007 budget at the regular Kingsville School Board meeting held last Thursday.

Coleman separated the budget into different categories including revenue and expenditures.  Revenue is broken down into five categories including local, county, state, federal and tuition.  The revenue totals $2,523,400.  Fifty-seven and nine-tenths percent of that revenue comes locally, 33.3 percent from the state and 8.8 percent from federal.

Coleman pointed out new sources of revenue which will come from a classroom trust fund or gaming money, and small schools grants, which totals $15 million.

On the gaming money, the estimated payment is going to be $348 per 2005-2006 average daily attendance.

The small schools grant will be distributed as follows: Ten million dollars will be divided among schools who have 350 or less average daily attendance.  Five million will be distributed on a tax-rate weighted average daily attendance basis to schools with less than 350 and a tax rate equal or greater than 3.43.

Coleman also  explained expenditures in the budget including salaries and benefits.  The district currently has on staff nine elementary teachers, 12 high school teachers, three special education teachers, one media specialist, one counselor and one Title One teacher.

Benefits include retirement which costs $93,000; insurance, Social Security and Medicare, totaling $181,509; and career ladder which costs $26,000.

Totals for salary and benefits are: teachers and administrators-$1,040,788; support staff-$195,085; and benefits-$300,509; which totals $1,536,382.

In old business, Coleman shared with the board that the district is still investigating different insurance companies to obtain a better rate on employee coverage.  They are looking into becoming part of a consortium composed of 19 different schools in order to lower their current premiums.  They should know by December if they are to be part of the consortium and will be able to purchase new coverage at that time.

In curriculum news, vocational agricultural instructor John Ferguson presented the vo-ag curriculum to the board and communication arts instructor Carol Link also gave the board her curriculum for the new school year.  Both were approved by the board.

In other vocational-agricultural business, Ferguson made a request to the board to approve two purchases consisting of a mig welder and a growing chamber.  Ferguson said he can obtain a grant that will pay 50 percent of the total costs of the new purchases and he has enough in the vo-ag account to cover the rest of the cost.  The board approved the expenditures.

In new business, Janet West was designated as Title One contact person and Coleman was named local education designate.

In safety news, Coleman shared with the board a report which outlines the school safety policy including the emergency drill log.  Types of incidents the students held drills for were tornados, fires, intruders, and fire department inspection.

In elementary reports, Coleman told the board summer school ended on June 8.  There were 128 students enrolled in the summer program, which is 47 percent of the total student population.  “However, next year, we will be able to offer remedial classes only, no enrichment classes,” said Coleman.  “This may have a direct effect on the number of students who sign up for summer school.”

In high school reports, principal Lorna Warren reported a 96.3 percent attendance rate for the school year.

In new business, Coleman shared with the board plans that could be underway to form a cooperative with Knob Noster, Holden, Windsor, Chilhowee, Leeton, and Crest Ridge to share resources among the schools for special needs students.  “There will be more services and testing materials available for these students if we are part of this co-op,” stated Coleman.  “We currently have an occupational and physical therapist in place, but might use a speech specialist or other type of specialist in the future, depending on our needs,” he added.  After some discussion on the co-op, the board agreed it would be worth the yearly $200 fee to be part of the cooperative.

In closed session, the board approved the hiring of Tim Hutchinson, high school science; Anna Mueller, fifth grade; and Ashley Struzick, school nurse.

The meeting was closed to reopen on July 13.

By Dana Neubert
News Staff

The city of Holden’s Board of Public Works put the final touches on their 2006-2007 budget which will be submitted to the city council for approval in the council’s June meeting.

Board approval of the budget, after some final “tweaking” by water superintendent Tony Lerda, took place at the board’s regular meeting held last Thursday night.  The meeting had been originally scheduled for the prior Tuesday, but was moved back due to a lack of quorum.

The new budget calls for anticipated revenues to be $750,700, with projected expenses set at $785,450.  Going into the budget year, the on-hand funds will be $194,001, giving the end of year projected balance, June 30, 2007, to be $159,251.

Anticipated revenues show a $26,300 increase over what was predicted last year, with projected expenses coming in $40,900 less than what was projected for budget year 2005-2006.  Actual revenue for 2005-2006 was $1,059.518.46, while expenses were only $747.18 higher at $1,060,265.64.

Expense line items that are projected to be appreciably less than lass year include water distribution repair and maintenance.  Last year, $72,575 was budgeted, while only $23,410 was spent.  This year, the board budgeted $30,000 - a 28 percent increase of actual expenditures.  New service installation was budgeted in 2005-2006 at $10,000, with only $2,163.39 being used.  This year’s budget halves last year’s prediction, setting the line item at $5,000.

Another decrease in last year’s budget is administrative planning and engineering, lowering the previous budget’s $10,000 figure to $3,500.  Actually spent on the line item was $1,912.22.

Budgeted items which are higher in the current financial plan include laboratory equipment, going from $700 to $5,000 due to new regulations requiring additional test equipment; service line supplies, from $8,000 to $15,000; and water distribution backfill and surface supplies, from $3,000 to $8,000.  O&M Enterprises, the city’s water system administrator, will receive a modest four percent increase over last year’s contract expenditure of $421,622.20.

The board also approved a short, intermediate and long-term plan that had been requested by Holden mayor Mike Wakeman. 

The plan calls for programs to be accomplished in the one to two-year, one to five-year, three to five-year, five to eight-year, and 10 to 15-year time frames.

Drinking water programs in the one to two-year time frame include sandblast and paint south stand pipe, gravel the top of the dam, replace carbon feeder, replace cooling and heating unit in the water treatment plant,  and replace master meter.  The plan also calls for a residential meter-replacement program to replace meters which have been service too long.  Residential meters are only accurate for 10 years or 500,000 gallons.  Some meters are showing more than 400,000.

In the drinking water one to five-year plans, programs include replacing 23,550 linear feet of water mains, extend 12,150 linear feet of new water mains, replace fire hydrants and move all residential meters to the property line.

Programs in the 10 to 15 year range include roofing both buildings and installing a 200,000 gallon overhead storage tower.

In the wastewater area, plans include expanding rip rap throughout lagoon berms and waterways, increase inlet capacity and removal of nutrients, which the board expects stricter limits in the future.

Projects at the lake include rehabilitating fencing, graveling roads and expanding public access.  In the three to five-year range, programs include building picnic shelters and handicapped accessible boat docks.  Hard-surfacing roads and parking areas fall into the five to 10 year range.

In an effort to curb inflow and infiltration into the city’s sewer system, the board approved a letter and questionnaire to be sent to all Holden homes.  The questionnaire asks pertinent questions about the home’s drainage and plumbing systems. 

The board is asking for patron’s help as the letter states, “Every time it rains, there are millions of gallons of rainwater getting into our sanitary sewer system, filling all of the pipes and manholes with unwanted water and sending it through our wastewater treatment system.  This causes many problems with the proper flow and treatment of the sewage for which the system is intended.

The latter states that studies show that rainwater is getting into the system may be entering through household plumbing and is asking for homeowners’ help by inspecting their home and using the questionnaire.

In another item of interest, Lerda explained to the board that an intake structure in the city lake had dropped into the lake due to a chain breaking.  He stated that divers from the Warrensburg Fire Department would come the next day and retrieve the structure and temporarily tie it up to its structure.

By Steve Sullins
Editor