Welcome to the first edition of UnifiEd’s Budget Watch Blog!

Every year, the superintendent works with the school board to develop a budget for the entire Hamilton County school system. This budget funds the operational side of the school system, including salaries for teachers, support staff, and central office and also the capital side of the school system, including buildings and maintenance.

This series will keep you informed about the development of the 2019-2020 budget both for Hamilton County generally and for the schools.

The budget for our schools starts with the Superintendent and the School Board and then moves to the County Commission and the County Mayor. Here is an overview of the process for the school budget:

• Hamilton County Department of Education (HCDE) Superintendent Dr. Bryan Johnson presents his budget for the school system to the school board.
• The school board votes whether to accept the budget or not.
• If the HCDE budget is approved, the budget is sent to the County Commission.
• Around this same time, the County Mayor presents his budget to the County Commission.
• The County Commission looks at both the Superintendent’s requested budget and the County Mayor’s requested budget, and decides whether to approve them.
• When both budgets are approved, the County Commission develops a plan for how the county will fund it. This may involve adjusting tax rates for sales, vehicle, or property tax.
  
  

Historically, about 45% of the County budget funds the school system, with the rest going to fund various county projects and programs.

Superintendent Dr. Johnson is expected to announce his 2019-2020 budget shortly. We’ll keep you informed of next steps as they happen!