CLAREMONT — The city’s School District expects to have calculated a total number for its deficit by the end of next week, the district’s acting business administrator said at a Wednesday School Board meeting.
The number is important because it will help school officials understand how much more they need to cut to make revenues match expenses amid an ongoing financial crisis.
Officials informed the public about the projected deficit last month and initially estimated it was between $1 million and $5 million. But the school district’s finances were in such disarray, a definitive number has been unavailable.
The district has cut costs already this year by forgoing the hiring of 19 new teachers and eliminating 20 other non-teaching jobs.
Matt Angell, the acting business administrator who has been working to rebuild the general ledger, said Wednesday he expects to have a number by Sept. 19. The district was also waiting on the completion of audits of recent years’ budgets.
Last week, the School Board unanimously voted to accept a $4 million short-term loan from Claremont Savings Bank to help cover costs.
The loan is intended to help the district pay overdue invoices, including food service, health insurance and retirement as it works to reduce spending. The district plans to repay the bridge loan in April with its annual state education adequacy aid grant, a per pupil amount of $4,100 every New Hampshire district receives.