Pam Hendrix, the only citizen who spoke at the first Oconee County Board of Education Budget Hearing on May 22, returned on Thursday (May 29) to use her allotted three minutes to continue her criticism of the Board and of the $120.5 million Fiscal Year 2026 Budget before it.
Hendrix, a local attorney who has been a frequent critic of government spending in the county, was the only citizen to speak on Thursday, the final hearing before the Board is scheduled to adopt the Fiscal Year 2026 Budget on June 9.
Hendrix criticized the growth in the budget when enrollments are declining and the size of the Fund Balance, or unspent monies, reflected in the budget.
Hendrix said the estimated Fund Balance of $40.0 million for June 30, 2024, in last year’s budget conflicted with the General Fund Balance of $51.1 million listed in the just completed Audit of Oconee County Schools for the Fiscal Year ending on June 30, 2024.
She also said that the ratio of the Unassigned Fund Balance to Fiscal Year 2026 expenditures, shown as 19.2 percent in the budget before the Board, exceeds policy adopted by the Board stating that the Unassigned Fund Balance should not exceed 15 percent of the following year’s budget expenditures.
No one addressed Hendrix after she spoke, but Board Member Brock Toole asked Oconee County Schools Chief Financial Officer Peter Adams to confirm that Oconee County Schools is exempted from some state financial regulations on funding.
Toole also said that the Board regulation on the size of the Fund Balance is only a recommendation.
Hendrix’s Comments
“I just think we have a bloated budget for the Oconee Schools,” Hendrix said when she came to the podium. “I think there's got to be places that we can cut.”
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| Hendrix Before Board 5/29/2025 |
“We are spending a lot, and it's growing and growing, and our enrollment is decreasing,” she said, “and I think it's got to stop.”
The Fiscal Year 2026 is based on a projected enrollment, used in calculation of state funding, of 8,323 students, down from the projected enrollment of 8,451 in the current Fiscal Year 2025 Budget.
“Per the Fiscal Year 24 Audit,” she said, “the Oconee County School Board was holding $51.1 million in their pot of gold on June 30, 2024–an increase of $6.5 million over June 30, 2023.”
Hendrix then referred to Board Regulation DM-R(1) on the size of the Fund Balance.
“The Fiscal Year 26 Budget lists the estimated unassigned fund balance at 19.26 percent,” she said, referring to the ratio of the Unassigned Fund Balance to Anticipated Expenditures in the budget. “A clear violation of your own policies,” she said.
Hendrix then noted that the presentation by Adams referred to a continuation budget for Fiscal Year 2026 of $112.6 million and new spending of $7.9 million.
“Do any of you know what really is in that money?” Hendrix said as loud bells sounded, indicating that her time to speak had expired.
Details From Adams
Adams had spoken for four minutes in his introductory comments to the Board.
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| Adams (Back to Camera), Adam Hammond, Toole 5/29/2025 |
He said that new spending consisted of increased salaries for teachers and other staff, mandated state health insurance spending, mandated Teacher Retirement System contributions, and money for the new School Resource Officer Program.
Adams also said the $40.0 million Fund Balance consisted of committed and assigned monies.
The budget lists $13.5 million as committed for retirement of the General Obligation Bond the Board sold to finance the massive building program now nearing completion and $2.0 million assigned monies for ongoing projects.
Another $1.4 million will be taken from that $40.0 million to balance the Fiscal Year 2026 budget, leaving an estimated unassigned fund balance on June 30, 2026, of $23.2 million.
That $23.2 million represents 19.3 percent of the $120.5 million budget.
“This represents approximately 2.5 months of salary and operational costs for the school district,” Adams said. “For comparison, the best practices recommended by the Department of Education is and standard business guidelines, they suggest we maintain 3 to 6 months of operational costs.”
It was to those recommended practices that Toole referred to when he asked Adams--after Hendrix had spoken--about a waiver from the Strategic Waivers School Systems (SWSS) program.
Adams said the Board had such a waiver.
Toole noted that the policy adopted by the Board was a recommendation that the ratio not exceed 15 percent, not a mandate.
Revenue Sources
The budget before the Board is based on a millage rate of 13.919, down from the current millage rate of 14.25.
Adams emphasized that the 13.919 rate is the rollback rate and that the Board will not be required to hold tax increase hearings if it adopts that rate.
Even with the rollback rate, Oconee County Schools will enjoy an increase of $1.9 million in revenue from the local property and ad valorem taxes from Fiscal Year 2025 to Fiscal Year 2026, according to the budget before the Board.
The budget also lists interest income revenue of $1.3 million. The budget for the current year had listed interest income of only $50,000, though actual interest income has greatly exceeded that amount.
The budget also shows an increase in state funding through the Quality Basic Education formula of $1.9 million, even with the drop in projected enrollment of 128 students.
With both local and state monies, the Fiscal Year 2026 shows revenues of $119.2 million, up $5.7 million from $113.5 in the current fiscal year.
Expenditures in the Fiscal Year 2026 Budget are the $120.5, up $5.6 million from $114.9 in the current budget.
Spending per student increased to $14,319 in the Fiscal Year 2026 Budget from $13,432 in the Fiscal Year 2025 Budget. That is an increase of $887 per student.
Related Meetings
The Oconee County Republican Party has announced that School Board Chair Michael Ransom will be joined by Interim Superintendent Debra Harden at its meeting on June 23.
Party Chair Kathy Hurley said in a message on Monday (June 2) to her email list that Ransom and Harden “will inform us on the Superintendent search and answer your questions.”
Superintendent Jason Branch is retiring effective at the end of June, and Harden will serve as interim superintendent until a replacement is found.
The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. at the Piedmont Oconee Health Campus Lobby Meeting Room, 1305 Jennings Mill Road.
The Oconee Enterprise, which covers Oconee County Schools extensively, is holding a Community Listening Session from 6 to 7 p.m. on Thursday (June 5) at the Oconee County Library in Wire Park.
According to a story on the front page of the May 29 issue of the paper, the session is “a chance for citizens to ask questions about the newspaper and meet our staff.”
Video
The video below is of the brief required Public Hearing on the Fiscal Year 2026 Budget on May 29. The meeting was held at the Board Room of the Instructional Support Center.
The video is shot from the rear of the room, following the restrictions of the Board.
Adams began his comments at 0:30 in the video.
Hendrix came to the podium to speak at 5:53 in the video.
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