JONESBORO — The Clayton County Board of Education unanimously approved its fiscal year 2024 budget in a meeting Monday, June 26.
The general fund budget is expected to be $641.72 million with the millage rate staying the same at 20 mills.
With a rate of 20 mills, a taxpayer would pay $860 in school taxes on a home valued at $100,000. If the millage rate stays the same, that doesn’t mean property tax bills will be the same because property values have increased.
The School Board has tentatively scheduled three public hearings to discuss the millage rate. The meetings are July 17 at 6 p.m. and July 31 at 11 a.m. and p.m. Those meetings will be held in the district’s Administration Complex in Jonesboro.
The general fund budget pays for the day-to-day operations for the school system.
Other funds for FY2024 include Special Revenue Fund ($174.2 million), Capital Projects Fund ($344 million), and Enterprise Fund ($65.9 million).
The budget includes a state-funded $2,000 raise for certified employees, 5.1% raises for school nurses and bus drivers, and a 3% cost-of-living raise for lower-paid employees (pay grade 29 and lower).
The total cost for state-funded raises for certified employees is about $8.3 million, $3.1 million for the COLA raises for the lower-paid employees, and $468,000 for raises for nurses and bus drivers.
Like other school systems throughout the state, Clayton County is having an increase in its portion of health costs for employees. The district share of the costs has increased from $11,340 per employee per year to $18,960. The local district is expected to absorb a total of $27 million to cover its share of the costs.
Salaries and benefits take up the majority of the budget with more than $552 million going to salaries and benefits.
A breakdown of the budget by object (numbers are rounded up):
Salaries: $380.48 million.
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