Financial report: no district debt, record eSPLOST month and operations update

A district official presented the monthly financial status at the Feb. 12 board meeting, reporting the district currently carries no debt in the debt service fund and that special-purpose local-option sales tax receipts (referenced in the meeting as East Plus) produced the highest monthly collection in district history for January 2026: $928,104.55. The same presentation listed January expenditures of $530,229.41 and a month-end eSPLOST balance of $9,323,912.88. The speaker also said special revenue accounts had collected 50.15% of expected revenues and expended 59.98% of budgeted expenditures through January.

During an operations update, the speaker explained the district’s three-pronged weather decision process: the superintendent (Doctor Thomas) coordinates with emergency-management partners (named in the presentation as Robbie Westbrooks and Jennifer Wilson), local commissioners and neighboring district superintendents; transportation and maintenance staff conduct on-the-ground checks before a decision is made. The speaker described the process as cautious and typically completed the day before potential closures, emphasizing the difficulty of implementing early dismissal versus late starts.

The operations update also summarized four active construction projects: a high-school remodel expected to conclude this summer, multi-year upgrades at Tate, Hill City work scheduled to be completed this summer, and Phoenix Junior High classroom additions that will run from summer into the following summer.

The board did not receive a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) or final contract for these projects at the meeting; selection of a construction manager for the junior-high project was approved separately.