District 300 Approves New Budget

The District 300 Board of Education adopted a $157 million budget Monday.  Chief Financial Officer Cheryl Crates said it was balanced, barely, thanks to $3 million in cuts and $4 million in federal stimulus funds.

Crates warned the board again that all bets were off if the state can't hold its own shaky budget together this year.  She reported the district had only this month received $5 million in state aid due last June because, "They just didn't have the money to pay it."

Crates didn't sound optimistic about future budgets.  "After next year the stimulus money won't be there anymore," she said.  Nor was she sanguine about future state aid, charging the state's spending has depended on borrowing against its pension plan for the past 10 years.

Crates said the district has been able to build up enough cash reserves to last "about 3 months" if the current Springfield budget deal falls apart.