District 5 Trying to Close $6.2 Million Budget Gap

By Lee Hendren, The Times and Democrat, Orangeburg, S.C.

Jun. 8–The Orangeburg Consolidated School District 5 Board of Trustees gave second reading Tuesday to the district’s operating budget for 2006-07.

At the moment, the budget anticipates revenues of $52.8 million and expenses of $59 million. That’s a difference of $6.2 million, said Donnie Boland, assistant superintendent for finance.

The board’s Budget Committee has called a meeting for 10 a.m. Thursday in the district administrative office at the corner of Ellis and Fair avenues to consider ways to reduce the $6 million gap.

“We have a lot of work to do. I pray that you all come up with something,” said Dr. Kalu A. Kalu, board chairman. “If we bring this back (for final approval) on the 27th, we will work on it all night and (still) not pass anything.”

Trustee Susan Gleaton asked how the district could justify increasing expenditures by more than $5.5 million when enrollment is anticipated to increase by just 71 students.

After years of decline, enrollment increased by 38 students in 2005-06, Superintendent Melvin Smoak said.

“Every year we start out in a deep hole. That cannot look good to the people we represent. We’re going to have to make some hard decisions,” Gleaton said.

The district is looking at moving $3.2 million out of a capital fund and returning it to the general operating fund, where it had been.

But Smoak warned the board that they cannot continue to make up deficits by drawing from the fund balance indefinitely.

“We keep going to the well. The well is about to run dry,” he said.

Smoak gave trustees a list of possible cuts, emphasizing that he was not recommending them, just presenting them for consideration.

Boland said he typically under-estimates revenues and over-estimates expenses.

“Even though we’ve had deficits (on paper) in the past, when the final numbers came in, we balanced the books,” Boland said.

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