Franklin City board adopts FY27 spending ordinance, green-lights salary study vendor review

The Franklin City School Board voted June 18 to adopt the fiscal year 2027 budget, aligning the school division’s spending authority with the City of Franklin’s ordinance so the district can legally spend on July 1.

Superintendent Miss Morrison told the board the division solicited nine responses for a comprehensive salary study and recommended further review of Management Advisory Group, which scored highest with 98 points in the evaluation. She said Fahrenheit Advisors scored 97 and PayPoint HR scored 88. "We got nine responses... Management Advisory Group has 98 points," Morrison said, recommending the board move forward with closer review of the top proposer.

The superintendent also briefed the board on the FY27 numbers included in the city budget and asked the board to adopt the city’s ordinance so the division would have appropriation authority July 1. During discussion board members pressed for more advance notice of the specific packet and asked whether the adopted budget would require layoffs. Morrison said the FY27 proposal contains no personnel reductions as written and that staffing changes would be handled through attrition if needed. She cautioned the board that salary increases recommended by a study would need to be phased and funded in future budgets.

Officials reviewed year-to-date May results for the current year: the superintendent presented a general fund of about $18.5 million with $17.5 million spent to date (about 95% of appropriations). She identified roughly $663,000 in outlier items that affected the year’s balance, and said after a May surplus of $189,000 the net shortfall presented in the materials was approximately $870,000. Morrison said the district expected a $194,000 security grant reimbursement and a $59,000 Medicaid settlement (roughly $253,000) by the end of June, which would improve the June position.

A board member moved to approve the FY27 budget as presented; the motion passed with one recorded abstention and the remainder voting to approve. The superintendent said the recommended salary-study project would likely take about six months, with any major compensation changes phased into future budgets.

What happens next: staff will post an intent-to-award for the selected vendor (allowing a 10-day response window for other proposers) before finalizing the contract and will bring any recommended contract award or budget amendments back to the board for approval.