The school district took in more revenues than projected earlier.
While planning a school district budget can be somewhat of a moving target, the Lucerne Valley Unified School District remains in solid shape today and in the foreseeable future. That forecast comes from Assistant Superintendent Olga Fisher - Business, who presented the Second Interim Report for the 2024-2025 school year to the Board of Trustees on March 13, 2025.
“Again, we must remain prudent in our spending to ensure that we are able to continue our momentum towards academic excellence,” according to Ms. Fisher.
With an enrollment of 1,181 students as of October 2, 2024, the district’s ADA for P-2 is projected at 92.3% of enrollment. Revenue increased in four categories above the current adopted budget. Total revenues budgeted were a total of $27.3 million, which comes from Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), federal, other state and local revenues. The Second Interim projection shows a positive difference of $1.5 million.
However, while a few expenditures are lower than budgeted, several are higher. Those include classified salaries, books and supplies, services and operations, and capital outlay. The negative difference is $3.1 million, according to Ms. Fisher’s report.
Capital outlay projects that reflect a $1.9 million increase in that category are due to several projects:
▪ Playgrounds at the elementary school
▪ CTE Culinary Art room project
▪ Site Logic energy saving project
This image shows the school district budgetary cycle.
The district’s ending balance is $7,684,051, which is comprised of several categories: non-spendable ($100,000), legal restricted ($384,098), reserve for economic uncertainty ($3,201,440), assigned ($3,575,000) and unassigned ($523,513).
Part of the Second Interim report is providing a multi-year financial forecast. By utilizing the report, the Board of Trustees must certify it can meet its financial obligations ind the current year and the following two fiscal years. Ms. Fisher is projecting that revenues will increase to $29.4 million in 2025-26 and $30.1 million in 2026-27. However, she also projects that expenditures will rise to $30.1 million in 2025-26. Expenditures will remain virtually the same at just over $30 million in 2026-27.
“During the 2024-2027 school years the LVUSD will be able to meet its financial obligations,” Ms. Fisher wrote in her summary. “There have been one-time funds infused into our school budget from the Federal level as well as the State. The District will manage the one-time funds so as to not create a structural deficit in our Unrestricted General Fund.
“Services and operating expenses as well as capital outlay have been reduced as much as possible to maintain an acceptable level of expenditures for continued academic success,” according to Fisher.
The District continues to go above and beyond as a demonstration of its ability to plan for the future. “This budget was completed with a 10% reserve. While the District is only required to have a 3% reserve, the County has recommended a higher reserve based on our financial situation.”
Ms. Fisher thanked assistant Lori Herriman for her hard work on helping to prepare the budget.
The school board will adopt the 2025-26 budget in June.