Tentative Dist. 150 Budget Shows Deficit

PEORIA - Peoria's School District 150 administrators are crunching numbers.  They're presenting a tentative budget to board members.  In years past, the district has gone out of their way to make sure the media had a full understanding of their budget.  In fact, they normally hold an informational meeting for the media the Friday before the budget is presented to the board, embargoing the data until the actual meeting.  Not this year...  We only received a skeletal outline of the 2010-2011 budget.  It shows a deficit of more than $7 million.  Of course, we'll know more details after tonight's meeting.

 

Officials tell us the district's cash reserves are still circling the drain.  There's been a quick turn-over in the financial department at 150.  Treasurer Pam Schau was fired a few weeks ago without explanation.  She had replaced Guy Cahill, who was fired last summer.  Former IVC Superintendent David Kinney is currently serving on an interim basis.  Last week, he was tasked with helping the district prepare tonight's tentative budget, which will be voted on by the board at the end of September.  According to our records, last August Schau announced a balanced budget for the 2009-2010 school year, eliminating a $9 million deficit.  At the time, District 150 was $30 million in debt to meet payroll.