Lexington, SC (Paul Kirby) – In a letter to parents who will have a child or children attending any Lexington School District One school next year, Superintendent Greg Little detailed a plan to reduce parents’ out of pocket fees in the 2020\2021 school year. That fiscal year begins July 1, 2020.
Fees are used by the district as a method of generating money for its general fund operating budget each year. They are much like a user fee. Fees only affect parents who have a child enrolled in the district’s schools.
Little explained the district’s general fund operating budget provides funding for the day-to-day operations of the district, such as paying salaries, insurance, utilities, and purchasing supplies, materials, and services. He said this should not be confused with the district’s capital budget, which funds fixed assets such as facilities and equipment.
According to Little, the district’s leadership team knows that many of their parents are going through tough times right now because of the COVID-19 pandemic. They kept that in mind as they developed the budget used to operate the district in the new fiscal year.
He went on to say one of the first things parents should notice is the district’s continuing effort to reduce or eliminate the fees parents pay each year. Last year, they focused on reducing middle school fees.
This year the proposed budget includes cutting or eliminating the following elementary and high school fees:
· The $6 kindergarten consumables supply fee is eliminated.
· The $28 fee parents pay for students in Grades 1 through 5 is reduced from $28 to $20, a 28.6% decrease.
· The $5 high school consumables supply fee is eliminated.
· The $5 language arts parallel reading fee is eliminated.
· The $25 parking fee is reduced to $5, an 80% decrease.
Everyone should also note that there is no millage increase for operations.
