Alamance County has allocated $250,000 from its general fund to the Alamance Burlington School System to stave off layoffs that school officials were to consider next week.
The Alamance County Board of Commissioners put the issue on its agenda for its meeting Monday after ABSS announced last week that the Alamance-Burlington Board of Education would consider a proposal at its Feb. 13 meeting for about 60 layoffs.
But the commissioners made clear Monday they feel that school officials have put unfair blame and pressure on the county for their own money problems.
Commissioner Steve Carter said that ABSS keeps coming back asking for more money.
“On June 19, Superintendent Dain Butler assured us that the additional $867,000 we added (to the ABSS budget for the current year) would prevent a reduction in force. To do that, we had to raise the tax rate on our citizens higher than any of us wanted to,” Carter said. “I’d like to know how much their budget is out of balance this year. We have asked but not received that information. Our board values education, but I am struggling with the management at ABSS. Somebody needs to take a look at that.”
Chaiman John Paisley agreed.
“We have been going beyond to support our teachers, students, staff and buildings. We have funded this before, and I want the public to know that, and now we’re partially doing it again,” he said.
Turner recommended that the commissioners allocate $250,000 from the county’s general fund.
“This will create a little time and space for both boards to ask the right questions and do the right things,” Turner said.
The commissioners voted unanimously for the proposal.
In a statement on its website, ABSS thanked the commissioners.
“This additional funding allows us to defer potential layoffs and program cuts so we can continue working with the County Commissioners to advocate for greater investment in our District,” it said.
The statement also noted that the school board has a hearing planned for Feb. 26 at 6 p.m. to seek public input on the proposed 2024-25 budget.
Earlier in the meeting, school board member Dan Ingle addressed the tensions between the school board and the commissioners that have arisen over budget issues in recent months.
“I’m here to be a peaceful person,” Ingle said. “We need to get together across the table and work together to get these problems fixed. The general public is upset with both of us.”
Ingle suggested that the commissioners consider a ¼-cent sales tax to help alleviate some of the budget woes.
Both boards were scheduled to meet at 2:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 8, with members of the local state legislative delegation at the ABSS administrative offices.
State Sen. Amy Galey, R-Alamance, announced on Monday evening that she has requested an investigation by the the Joint Legislative Commission on Government Operations into ABSS’s capital and operations decisions. The commission is a committee of lawmakers led by the majority party who have the power to hold oversight hearings on anything, ranging from hurricane relief to the state’s high school athletic association.
In other business Monday, Ron McKaskel of REI Engineers, the company tasked with inspecting the roofs of ABSS and county buildings, told the commissioners his company has a tentative list of the 22 roofs most in need of repair, though he said some roofs have yet to be inspected.
“All 22 of these buildings have water intrusion, and so many Band-Aids have been put on them in the past. My recommendation is that they need to be budgeted for and repaired or replaced ASAP. You don’t want water coming in these building,” McKaskel said. “These need to be fixed year one.”
Roof projects have been fully funded for Haw River Elementary and Graham High, Graham Middle and Southern Alamance High to the tune of $12.8 million. That leaves the total unfunded amount for the remaining 18 roofs at $22.7 million.
Kevin Waters of Systems Contractors said he had prepared a list of the 21 top-priority HVAC projects, which have a total price tag of just under $56.5 million.
But he added, “We still have more schools to go through.”
Commissioner Craig Turner asked for the two lists to be integrated because for some of the buildings, the HVAC systems have to be removed from the roofs before the roofs can be fixed.
Commissioner Pam Thompson agreed.
“We have to do this right or we’re still continuing to put Band-Aids on the problems,” she said.
