Community Unit School District 308 Finance and Operations Advisory Committee met July 17.
Here is the minutes provided by the Committee:
I. Roll call
The meeting was officially called to order at 5:36 p.m. by Board of Education Member Lauri Doyle.
The sign-in sheet was used in place of an official roll call.
Members in Attendance: Kenneth Blue, Dominick Cirone, Keith Craven, Mariah Sloan, Patrick Stiles, Lauri Doyle Board Member Co-Chair, Brent Lightfoot Board Member Co-Chair, Jeff Ryder Director of Finance, Asif Dada Assistant Superintendent for Business Services & Operations
Guests in Attendance: Bob Lewis from PMA, Heather Moyer Board of Education Member
Members Absent: Willis Jordan, Pranil Vaidya
Recording Secretary: Carrie Szambelan
II. Approval of Minutes from April 10, 2017 and May 8, 2017 Meetings
A motion was made by Lauri Doyle to approve the minutes from April 10, 2017 and May 8, 2017 meeting. Mariah Sloan seconded the motion. All members in attendance agreed unanimously to approve the minutes as presented.
III. Presentation of Bond Restructuring Scenarios
Mr. Bob Lewis, from PMA, presented a PowerPoint presentation similar to the one from last finance meeting. He discussed thoroughly with the committee three different bond restructuring scenarios and what their impact would have on the district.
He mentioned the passage of the budget doesn’t necessarily bring to conclusion the uncertainty of school funding because the budget is still missing the funding model. An evidence based model is necessary in order for the district to receive funds for this coming school year. So without this model in place, it can be difficult at this time to come to a financing conclusion.
Mr. Cirone questioned the cost of issuance of these bonds. Mr. Lewis mentioned the fees will depend on the amount of the bond. For example, Version 1 refinances $27 million bonds compared to Version 3 with $18 million. As a result, Version 3 would be the lowest amount of fees due to the amount of the bonds being restructured. He mentioned the cost is already factored into the analysis.
Mr. Dada stated if the committee decides not to consider restructuring bonds, the chances for passing a referendum in the future for operational costs will be very unlikely. Mr. Blue and Mrs. Doyle agreed.
The committee agreed to hold off their recommendation at this time. They narrowed their choice down to Version 2 or Version 3. However, they want to see the outcome of the GSA funding model and how much will be received by the state. Overall, they preferred Version 3, but do not want to incur the two year tax levy increase to $35 million if they may need to go for an operating rate increase. If funding is received similar to SB1 or better, the likelihood of limiting rate referendum declines significantly.
The committee’s plan is to reconsider the resolutions with their recommendation at the August 21, 2017 Board meeting assuming GSA funding will be in place by then. Mr. Lewis informed the committee that there is still some time before they need to make a decision since the call date for the bonds is preferably in October.
IV. Public Comment (3 minutes each)
There were no public comments.
V. Adjournment
A motion was made by Lauri Doyle to adjourn. Brent Lightfoot seconded the motion. Then all present were in favor to adjourn. Meeting was adjourned at 6:37 p.m.
https://www.sd308.org/site/handlers/filedownload.ashx?moduleinstanceid=9951&dataid=40496&FileName=7.17.17%20Finance%20Committee%20%20Minutes.pdf
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