Jeff Eversole
County Commission Chairman Jeff Eversole said Wednesday the school board will have to work out its budget woes without help from a property tax increase.
Though he said the commission is being hammered with entreaties for additional school support, he said, “I am not in favor of a tax hike. I think you will find the board is pretty much with that. The county mayor said he was not proposing a tax increase.”
Chairman Eversole said in a meeting two years ago he told Supt. Justin Robertson not to use a big influx of COVID-19 funds for reoccurring expenses. He said he advised, “You can’t bank on this one-time money. It’s going away.”
He said, “Shame on you for using money for positions that were short term. We need to make sure that we are taking care of our students.”
Commissioner Steve Highlander, former school board member, said out of $150 million in COVID funds, that $20 million went to the charter schools, $30 million to completely Tyner Middle/High School and $100 million to the County Schools.
He said some of the school funds were used for items like social and emotional specialists and behavioral aides. He said those were “really good programs, but were not renewable” as funded.
Commissioner Chip Baker said the County Schools are due to get $276 million from the county this year – up from $270 million. He said the increase to the schools from the county over the past three years has been $31 million. “That’s pretty sizable,” he said.
Commissioner Joe Graham said, “We hear a lot about cuts, but there are no cuts. The schools are not going to get less under the requirement for maintenance of effort.”
Ben Connor, school board member, said the schools had been advised they were getting $8 million less from the county. He said the board took steps to get teacher salaries up to state-mandated levels and had to provide support personnel to help with the new third grade retention law.
He said there is no penalty if the county does not meet maintenance of effort.
Lee Brouner, county finance director, said the county will meet maintenance of effort this year and in the future.
County Mayor Wamp said the state had settled on a 3.1 percent increase in TISA funding to school systems.
He said the school position “will be that they are facing inflationary pressures across the board.”
Commissioner Baker said of the email and phone campaign to the commissioners, “I never did that when I was on the school board. I don’t appreciate it, but it’s the way it is.”
The commission and school board are to meet on Monday at 5:30 p.m. at the old Harrison Elementary School.
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