Avon Schools Face $1.6 Million Funding Cut in State Budget

Now that Gov. John Kasich’s two-year, $112 billion operating budget is in effect, the will see at least $1.6 million in state funding losses over the next biennium. That’s the bad news. 

 The good news is that Avon schools treasurer Kent Zeman is betting the district can overcome the current seven-figure hit without introducing a new levy or reducing personnel. 

That prediction stems, in part, from the that was passed in May to boost revenue by $1.8 million per year through 2016. 

Additionally, the district was poised to lose $2.2 million over the next two years, but thanks to an extra $841 million in tax revenue generated from 13 consecutive months of job growth, the Ohio Senate was able to offer some relief to Avon and several other districts across the state.

 “Our current five-year forecast, when we were pushing for our community to support the levy that they passed back in May, we had it reflected in there some of these losses,” he said. “Not all of them were complete surprises. The current forecast is showing us to be fine through 2015 based upon all the knowledge we have.” 

However, Zeman explained that economic landscapes will continue to shift through the summer and fall both locally and on the state level. The $1.6 million in losses could grow if the Ohio General Assembly decides to make further cuts to education in the second year of Kasich’s budget. 

By October, the treasurer will release an updated forecast, giving him and the community a better idea on the state of the district’s budget. 

“Hopefully, (the forecast) will reflect our ability to absorb the majority of these cuts without affecting the instruction of our students and without going back to the community in the short term,” he said.