WESTMINSTER : School District Balances Budget

For the first time in five years, the Westminster School District has been able to staunch the flow of red ink and prepare a budget in which its income matches its expenses, officials said.

On Tuesday, spokeswoman Audrey Brown said that accumulated savings made from years of staff and class reductions, and by eliminating a school, made the financial turnaround for the 1994-95 fiscal year possible.

“This is a huge relief. The (school board) is ecstatic and our budget director can’t stop smiling,” Brown said.

Since 1990, the district has been forced to spend about $1.7 million from its cash reserves to supplement its general fund. That fund covers expenses including salaries, benefits, materials and equipment.

Next year, the district is expected to spend about $27 million from its general fund, about the same amount it will receive from the state, Brown said.

She said the district’s financial troubles resulted from years of reduced state funding combined with the recession. The current budgetary estimates show that the district probably will not need to dip into its reserve through 1998.