By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
The Hays USD 489 Board of Education approved its 2018-19 $48.7 million budget at its meeting Monday night at the Rockwell Administration Center.
No one from the public spoke during the public hearing, and the budget was approved with little comment from the board.
The budget includes a .767-mill levy decrease, which was the result of the end of a special mill levy of 0.646 mills for declining enrollment and an increase in assessed valuation.
The total mill levy for the school district will be 42.799 mills.
The school district also levies taxes for the Hays Recreation Commission. The rec commission’s general mill levy will stay at 3 mills, but its employee benefits and special liability levy will increase from 1.141 mills to 1.391 mills.
The school district has no control over the HRC levy.
Assessed valuation for the district increased by almost $1.3 million to more than $316 million. The districts bonded indebtedness also dropped by more than $1.3 million.
The State of Kansas passed a school funding plan that will increase school funding by more than $500 million statewide over the next five years.
Hays’ total state funding increase will be about $2.1 million. The district also is forecasting it will see a federal funding increase of $156,040. However, once the loss of the declining enrollment levy, which was a temporary program, is figured into the budget, the district will gain less than $1 million in additional revenue for the coming school year.
The district will be investing its additional money back into personnel this year. Six new certified staff and seven classified staff have been added for the 2018-19 school year at a cost of about $500,000, Superintendent John Thissen said.
The special education cooperative, which Hays administrates added one certified staff member and 10 classified staff.
The board raised pay for its custodial staff. It is still negotiating with the Hays NEA teacher’s union.
In other business:
• Board president Many Fox submitted her board and committee appointments for the year.
Updated: 11:51 a.m. Aug. 21