On Jan. 25, the state announced it would withhold about $305,820 from the school in March and restore it by the end of May. More than half of the state's districts are affected by the delay, the determination of which was based on each district's reserves. By law, the state must first delay district aid payments to reduce the state's need for short-term borrowing.
In Breckenridge, Neil Kusler, business manager, said the three-month financial suspension will decrease the district's cash reserves. But he said the withdrawal amount "can and will change," and the district does not have to borrow funding to fill the gap.
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Wayne Olson, superintendent of Campbell-Tintah School, said his district expects $188,406 to be withheld. Last August, the administration anticipated the move and borrowed some funding.
"We had invested it and have to use it sooner than we had hoped, so we're going to lose some of the interest that we had anticipated on making," he said.
Unlike other districts that will be forced to borrow funding at a higher rate, Olson believes Campbell-Tintah will be fine barring any "catastrophic" situations. Still, he's cautious about the future. Anticipating the state's budget, he thinks it will reduce district aid by 1 or 2 percent, cause more delays throughout the year, or both.
"It's going to force ourselves, and probably a lot of districts in the state, to do some aid anticipation borrowing just to make sure that we can pay our bills on time," he said.
Olson wants state lawmakers to stop forcing local districts to seek operating levies from their constituents and start better prioritizing education.
"The health of the state of Minnesota is based upon our children getting a good education," he said. "It's not a local issue, it's a state issue, and the state needs to do a better job taking care of that."
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