Yuma Union High School District budget revision captures $29.4M carryover, raising M&O total to about $115M

Brenda Iguerra, the district's director of finance, told a public hearing that the district's mandatory May budget revision captures $29,365,251 in carryover and raises the revised maintenance and operations (M&O) budget to $115,000,575.46.

The revision is required after the annual financial close so the district can add unspent carryover dollars and update fund totals based on the state's finalized enrollment counts, Iguerra said. The May documents also include the Classroom Site Fund allocation of $12,850,223 and a revised capital fund total of $15,964,449.

"So our carryover amount was the 29,365,251," Iguerra said while guiding officials and attendees through the budget forms. She pointed to a new line on the M&O page that reflects a district policy to maintain a minimum $10,000,000 carryover reserve.

The presenter and attendees discussed a highlighted item labeled "group B weight supplement," which Iguerra said is an Arizona Department of Education (ADE) weighting used to allocate a one‑time payment tied to the district's free‑and‑reduced population. "That line specifically is for our free and reduced population, and it's a one time payment that the state...is giving our district," she said. The district cautioned that ADE's final calculations can change until the state completes its end‑of‑year ADM work.

Board members asked how free‑and‑reduced eligibility is established. An attendee summarized the process: family‑submitted forms determine status, and several speakers described the input as effectively self‑reported. "It's honor system," one participant said; Iguerra confirmed the state compiles those self‑reported forms when determining weighted ADM allocations.

A board member asked how much of the budget reduction stems from lower enrollment versus changes in state funding. Iguerra said it is a combination. She explained that the September revision used a previous 100th‑day ADM of 10,934.9605 while ADE's current ADM used for the May revision is 10,793.4505, a decrease of 141.51 students. That decline directly reduces base funding calculations, she said, while carryovers and one‑time state payments increase the revised totals.

Participants also revisited earlier study‑session estimates related to concurrent (dual) enrollment. An attendee summarized that paying for concurrent enrollment could allow the district to count students at a higher full‑time equivalent rate and recapture roughly $900,000 in funding, with a potential net gain of about $400,000 after the district pays upfront costs.

A procedural motion to "return" was made, moved by Carlo and seconded by Shelley; the presiding officer called for a voice vote and said the motion carried. The public hearing ended and the meeting proceeded into the regular agenda.

Why it matters: capturing carryover and one‑time state payments can materially increase the district's available spending in the short term, while a decline in ADE countable ADM reduces recurring base funding. The balance between one‑time and recurring dollars affects budgeting decisions for staffing, programs and capital planning going forward.

Next steps: Iguerra noted ADE final calculations may change some one‑time payment amounts; no formal budget adoption vote is recorded in the transcript of this public hearing segment.