School District Of Oconee County Board Of Trustees Holds First Reading Of The Fiscal Year 2020 General Fund Budget

(Seneca, SC)————————The School District of Oconee County Board of Trustees held a work session Monday night in the School Board Conference Room on Pine Street in Walhalla. One of the discussion items on the agenda was the first reading of the fiscal year 2020 General Fund Budget. 

Steve Hanvey from the School District of Oconee County says that in the budget process, the School District has to work with what the General Assembly is doing on their level in Columbia along with going to Oconee County Council to get approval from that body in regards to the School District budget. 

Hanvey says that the School District is using the House version of the budget while the Senate debates their budget. Even though it is a fluid document, Hanvey says that will pay increases called for by the General Assembly along with changes to projected income and expenditures, the School District is projecting in its first reading a budget deficit of $3.4 million dollars. 

Hanvey expects the School District that have more accurate numbers by the end of May as they continue to tweak and work on the budget.   Hanvey says that 89% of the budget is for personnel, which includes salaries, benefits and retirement. 

Hanvey says that the School District is not able to cut personnel and will instead be adding personnel with the addition of mental health counselors and a School Resource Officer in every school in the district.