Crete-Monee school district’s practice of deficit budgeting to continue operating will probably soon land it on the state’s financial watch list, school Supt. Steve Humphrey told school board members.
Humphrey, discussing the 1997-98 budget Monday, told school board members the district will spend $1.7 million more than it takes in during the 1997-98 school year. Nevertheless, that budget is $500,000 less than the 1996-97 budget, which is $2.2 million in the red. He said the 1996-97 budget turned out to be $150,000 more than than district officials had anticipated.
Humphrey attributed Crete-Monee school district’s financial plight to the state’s educational funding approach, which he said benefits schools in DuPage County while penalizing south suburban school districts. Humphrey, joined by School Board President Randy Farmer, called on district residents to lobby state legislators for more public school funding.
Humphrey made lobbying trips to Springfield in this month with parents, staff and faculty, as well as on behalf of the Homewood-based Chicago Southland Chamber of Commerce. He said it may be necessary to change from a property tax-based funding system to an income tax-based system.
Still, the school superintendent indicated deeper budget cuts might have been made had he realized a proposed regional outlet mall was unlikely to materialize.
Humphrey noted expectations of $1.4 million in property taxes from the proposed shopping center west of Monee affected budgeting.
The project, spearheaded by an out-of-state land speculator, was joined in November 1996 by the Mills Corp., a developer of regional outlet malls. Within four months, the Mills Corp. dissociated from the project.
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