According to the auditors Oxford Schools has an ‘unmodified opinion? at the end of the fiscal year, which was June 30,2014.
‘An unmodified opinion is the best opinion that a CPA firm can render on a set of financial statements,? said CPA Jane Johnson, of Yeo & Yeo CPAs & Business Consultants, who presented the audit Oct. 22 board meeting. ‘There were no findings, no significant differences, and no material weaknesses.?
According to the budget the student population growth of Full Time Equivalent (FTE) students has grown over the past four years, from 4,547 in 2010 to 5,411 in 2014.
‘The reason we have this in here is because a lot of funding is based upon FTE from the state,? Johnson said.
The general fund’s fund balance at the end of June was $5,842,739, which equals 11.9 percent of the budget. According to the budget, $47,293,412 of revenue was brought it. Of that amount $38,857,804 (82 percent) came from the state, $5,010,987 (11 percent) came from local taxes, $1,755,735 (four percent) and $1,668,886 (three percent) came from federal.
On the expenditure side employee benefits are $12,831,711 (27 percent), salaries, $23,810,934 (51 percent), purchased services, $5,786,144 (12 percent), supplies and materials, $2,662,624 (six percent) and other $1,867,831 (four percent).
‘Employee benefits and salaries are almost 80 percent, which is normal for a district,? Johnson noted.
Speaking of employee benefits, Johnson pointed out that the retirement rate for basic MIP (Member Investment Plan) with health subsidy is currently up about 1 percent to 25.78 percent total out-of-pocket cost to district, but an additional 8.84 percent will be coming for a total rate of 34.62 percent.
‘Every year, that is one of the things that impact our budget because the MPSERS rate keeps going up. That’s why we talked about last year that salaries should really be 60 percent and benefits should be 20,? added Chief Financial Officer Pamela Anstey. ‘We’re at 50/30, which (is where) most districts in the state are because of the benefits being so expensive.?
Anstey said that’s why they’ve been talking about insurance reform, so the staff can take home more pay instead of it all going to benefits.
‘It’s not that the district isn’t spending the money on the staff; it’s just not a good proportion for salary,? she continued. ‘So we’re just going to have to figure out how we can get more in the pay check and sustain it. That’s something we’re working on.?
The board is expected to vote on the audit at the Nov. 12 regular meeting.