Why is Balancing The Rock Hill School Budget So Difficult?

This illustration shows why it is so difficult to balance the Rock Hill Schools Budget in a year where revenues will be down considerably. As you can see, Salaries are by far the biggest item in the budget. The only way to make a dent here is to reduce salaries (Furlough) or to eliminate jobs. We are eliminating jobs by not replacing folks who leave at the end of the year.




As you can see by this graph, most of the salaries go to Teachers.












Since these items go to the lowest bidder, it's doubtful there is a savings - unless you decide not to do maintenance or keep the schools clean - something no one on the board is thinking.





We have just started an energy management contract/system. Unless we want to turn off the heat and air conditioning, there is not much here to save.








I hope this gives you a better feel for why working on budget issues is so difficult. We all know there are savings here and there, but when you look at the budget from a distance, reducing people is the only way to make a significant dent when there is a major revenue shortfall.