Proposed fiscal 2024 budget before school board Monday night

It’s May and that means next fiscal year’s proposed budgets are before local government bodies and that will be case for Sumter school board on Monday night.

First reading of the proposed fiscal 2024 budget and a code of conduct update highlight Sumter School District’s Board of Trustees meeting agenda, which was posted Friday online by a district staff member.

At last week’s board Finance Committee meeting, district Chief Financial Officer Shatika Spearman presented the preliminary budget proposal to committee members. In that presentation, she indicated district administration wants to ask Sumter County Council for the maximum allowable millage increase of 12.75 mills next month. That would translate to about an additional $2.6 million in local revenue for the district.

Trustee and committee Chairman Daniel Palumbo said the specific millage request will be a discussion topic for the full board and administration to work through and come to an agreement on in its next two meetings.

Spearman said second reading on the budget and public input is planned for a special-called meeting on Tuesday, May 30, at 6 p.m.

Administration and the board are scheduled to make their budget request presentation to county council on June 6.

Monday’s meeting is the board’s regularly scheduled monthly work session and will begin at 6 p.m. at the district office, 1345 Wilson Hall Road. Since it is the monthly work session, public participation is not an agenda item.

For those not physically attending, the district continues to broadcast meetings live on YouTube.

Anyone wanting to attend the meeting virtually can do so via YouTube Sumter School District Board Meeting and the district’s Facebook page, @SumterSCSchools.