Board hears annual financial report; consultant flags declining student counts and modest carryover

The Fountain Hills Unified School Board received its annual financial report and voted to approve it after a presentation by Tyler Moore of True Professionals, the district's finance consultant.

Moore walked trustees through the district's fiscal structure, explaining there are two main categories of funds and that fund 001 (maintenance and operations) is the primary operating fund. He presented recent spending trends and said spending has been "pretty flat" over the last four fiscal years. Moore noted the district's M&O fund carryover was "just over $890,000" for fiscal year 2021 and explained that the district must manage cash, predicted ADM and tax‑rate relationships to maintain balance.

Moore also flagged that average daily membership (ADM) has steadily declined over the past five years, which affects state funding and budget forecasting. He walked board members through how excess cash is handled in coordination with the county superintendent's office and how changes to ADM can create cash‑flow fluctuations. Board members asked clarifying questions about compounded numbers versus annual receipts; Moore confirmed the figures shown are ending balances carried forward.

Following the presentation, the board moved and approved the annual financial report. Trustees thanked the presenter and commented on the difficulty of school finance and the benefit of having an experienced consultant while the district continues the search for a director of finance.

Board members also discussed procurement items that appear on the consent agenda (large vendors cited include Salt River Project, EPCOR Water, and CDW) and noted an electric bill of about $388,000 for the year was referenced in the packet discussion.

The board approved the consent agenda and several policy advisories later in the meeting; the AFR approval was by voice vote and no roll‑call tally was recorded in the public transcript.