Sections
- Overview: School District “General Fund” Budget
- Factors Affecting a District’s Budget
- Timeline: State Funding & District Budget
Overview: School District “General Fund” Budget
Every spring school district administrators and school board members work to come up with a “General Fund” budget–the school district budget to fund district operations for the next school year that begins on July 1.
Primary Budget for School District Operations. The General Fund budget contains the revenues and expenditures to operate the school district in the coming school year. All of the revenues (state and local) are “unrestricted” funds–funds that the school district can use for any purpose. The largest expenditure is teacher salaries.
Importance of State Funding. For most school districts in South Carolina, state funding provides the largest amount of revenue for a district’s General Fund budget. The unrestricted-use money that the state provides districts is called “State Aid to Classrooms.” This is also the largest source of funds for paying teacher salaries. (See more on state funding below.)
A Balanced Budget. There must be sufficient state and local revenue to pay for all of the planned expenditures in a General Fund budget. (See “Funding Gap” below.)
School Board Has Final Approval. School district administrators develop a budget for the school board to consider. The elected school board has the authority to make changes to the budget. A majority vote of board members is required to approve a final school district budget. Some districts need additional approval by other local officials.
Factors Affecting a District’s Budget
Timeline: State Funding & School District Budget
When districts know the state funding they will receive and the start of their next fiscal year