No Tax Increase Included in Proposed FY22 GCS General Fund Budget

In a Special Called Meeting at the J. Floyd Hall District Office, the Greenville County Schools Administration presented its proposed FY22 General Fund Budget for first reading. A second and final reading of the $714,187,000 proposal is scheduled for May 18, at 6:30 p.m. A public hearing a 6 p.m. to allow community members to comment on the budget proposal will precede that meeting.

Next year’s proposed budget does not include an increase to local property taxes, though the Board has the authority to levy as many as 15 carryover mills from past years plus a number of additional mills not yet identified by the State’s Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office. The decision to maintain the current millage rate is in recognition of the difficulty many businesses have faced as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it means 4.1 carryover mills from FY 19 will lapse and no longer be available to the Board to meet current or future needs. Additional revenue needed to meet the proposed budget will primarily be provided by the increasing value of a local mill, a $10 million increase in state funding, and the use of $22,960,000 in fund balance, generated from underspending the budget in past years. The State Budget has not been finalized, so it is possible the amount of fund balance needed to fully fund the FY 22 Budget will change before the second reading.

Notable new expenditures in the budget include:

• A step increase for all teachers (including local supplement) - $14,751,000
• Increase entry-level teacher compensation to $41,500 – $365,000
• 2% raise for all other (non-teaching) personnel - $6,493,000
• An increase to the employer’s contribution rate to state retirement - $6,173,000
• Personnel to open Fountain Inn High School (fall of 2021) - $2,153,000

Other proposed expenditures include a modification to the bus driver salary schedule ($557,000), and increase to the bus driver safety bonus ($365,000), additional work days for school nurses ($221,000), and 12.2 additional full-time positions to hire teachers for multi-lingual learners (10.2) and school psychologists (2.0). The proposed budget also includes $2.6 million in budget reductions.

A complete list of proposed new expenditures and reductions is available below: