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School Board Member Thomas Floyd gives update on Thursday night meeting

Sue Honea

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I offered these remarks to my fellow board members this evening:
“First of all,  I would like to say that some of my colleagues on this board have been claiming the students in our schools are suffering. No specifics have been stated though. The insinuation is that this alleged “suffering” can be alleviated by increasing the school budget. The fact is there are no students in our schools that are “suffering.” They have buses to haul them to school and back home. They are fed at school two times a day. They go to school in air-conditioned classrooms. They have running water and indoor plumbing. They have teachers. They have books and computers. They have sheriff’s deputies to keep them safe. I urge my colleagues to quit making subjective claims and stick to facts, figures, and hard data.

Secondly, I want to review the facts of this board’s recent request for increased local funding. Here are the facts:

1) The BOS funded us for FY 2026 $11,347,245. This was an increase of funding in the amount of $336,237 from FY 2025.

2) My colleagues voted on June 29 to request from the BOS funding for FY 2027 in the amount of $14,038,300. This is an increase from last year’s funding of $2,691,055- an increase of 23.7%.

3) The levying authority can only fund this increase by either a large tax increase or by cutting funding for other departments like the sheriff’s office or the road department. The only other way this budget can be funded is by the school board borrowing the money like you all did last year by means of  a “shortfall note.” I caution you that this school district is already carrying indebtedness of over $8 million. I will oppose another shortfall note as vigorously as I have this bloated budget.

Thirdly, my colleagues have stated they are only doing what the law allows.  I say to you that just because something is legal does not mean that it is either just or prudent. I contend that asking the BOS to increase our funding by 23.7% is neither just not prudent.

Fourthly, I remind you my colleagues on the board that our policy DCC says plainly that we as a board are to plan the school budget with the assistance of the superintendent. We are not to put that responsibility solely on the superintendent and then just rubberstamp his budget. I suggest that we start having some all day work sessions on Saturdays and start going through the details of this budget line  by line. I further suggest that the president of this school board, with the superintendent and the financial director meet with the president of the BOS, the County Administrator. and the tax assessor and look realistically at how much Simpson County can afford to fund the school district.

Fifthly, I strongly suggest each of my colleagues develop a working relationship with the supervisor from your district. I am convinced our BOS wants to adequately fund our schools. But they also are trying to be fiscally responsible and they are expecting us to do the same.”

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