Steamboat Pilot & Today

Steamboat Springs — A preliminary budget for the Steamboat Springs School District will be presented to education board members at 8:45 a.m. today at the George Sauer Human Services Center.
The preliminary budget is the first step in developing the district budget that will be turned for the first time June 30 and again in October after final enrollment numbers are determined.
Superintendent Cyndy Simms said the first budget would provide a framework for the finance director to work with principals and school directors to determine the budget for each school in the district.
The budget is comprised of a base and five variables including cost of living, personnel, school size, at-risk students and hold harmless, that will determine the amount of money the school district receives from the state.
The cost of living variable will be updated since Amendment 23 passed last year increasing the teacher and support staff salaries to compensate for the high cost of living in Steamboat.
The state legislature will adjust the base by inflation plus one percent, which will make it 5.7 percent.
However, with the other variables in the equation, Steamboat will receive a little less.
Simms said the district receives $164 million through the hold harmless variable to give Steamboat and 11 other schools the opportunity to provide the same educational services, since the money originally allocated from the state was less than the district needed.
The $164 million the school is awarded is the same amount of money the district needed to complete their budget when the state legislature designed the finance program in 1994.
Simms said she doesn't think the district receives as much financial support as it should but is as certain that all other districts feel the same way.
"No school district ever has enough money to do everything they want," she said.

-To reach Jamie Hallman call 871-4234 or e-mail newsclerk@steamboatpilot.com