Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : County OKs Budget of Acton-Agua Dulce District

After cutting back spending, the Acton-Agua Dulce Unified School District has won approval of its budget from the Los Angeles County Office of Education.

But despite the approval, county officials said they intend to closely monitor the finances of the small school district.

“We still need to watch (the district) because it’s new,” said Maureen Saul, an officer with the education office’s business advisory services department. The school district this year expanded from a K-8 to K-12 district, although students in grades 10-12 are continuing to attend schools in the Antelope Valley Union High School District.

Supt. Tom Brown said he was relieved the county approved his district’s budget, which has been under scrutiny for months. Brown said he feels comfortable the district will keep its spending in line with revenues throughout the year.

“We’ve got to watch ourselves,” he said.

Last month the county education office rejected the Acton school district’s budget, ordering a series of adjustments. Through discussions with the county, Brown said the district came up with a final budget that makes some of the recommended changes while providing a required 3% reserve.

Saul warned that if the district’s ninth-grade enrollment drops below 65, the district could have money problems since budget revenues are based on that attendance figure. The three-school district has a total enrollment of about 1,825.

“We don’t know how parents will test the waters,” she said. “If (enrollment drops) too low, it robs them of the revenue they need to run this new program.”

A decline in ninth-grade enrollment for now seems unlikely. Since Vasquez High School opened Aug. 31, attendance has grown from 70 to 81, Brown said. If the Acton-Agua Dulce district is unable to maintain a balanced budget, Saul said, the county could assign a fiscal adviser to monitor spending.

“(State law) still gives us authority to intervene anytime during the year if we need to,” she said.