By SUE ELLEN ROSS – Staff Reporter

RESERVE – The St. John Parish School system will have to tighten their belts during the next school year, according to Felix Boughton, executive director of Business and Finance. He presented an amended budget to the School Board at their meeting on Thursday.

He cited differences in both projected revenues and projected expenses.

Original budgeted revenue was listed at $46,451,230, compared to the current amended budget of $47,725,034 – leaving a difference of $1, 273,804. According to the budget report, the addition was due to student growth/raises and increase in tobacco money from State Revenues; and an increase in carryover funding in Special Education and an increase in technology funding from Federal Revenues.

Expenditures didn’t fare as well.

Original budgeted expenditures were listed as $48,703,381. The amended budget came in at $50,194,985, a deficit of $1,490,312.

“Revenues are not meeting our budget,” Boughton told the board. Although we will still have a small surplus this year, we will have to make budget cuts next year.”

This comment drew concern from board members,

(See Schools, Page 8A)

(From Page 1A)

especially Russ Wise, who asked Boughton where the danger areas were. “I hope those cuts don’t come from our classrooms,” he said.

Boughton replied that it is mandatory for 70 percent of the money to be used for curriculum and class size ratio must stay constant.

“This is the last place we want to make cuts,” Superintendent Mike Coburn said in reply to Wise’s comment. “Right now, that’s not in our mind. We will definitely look outside the classroom for this.”

Boughton will present a final amended budget to the board at its first meeting in June. He will then ask for approval of this budget at the second June meeting.