2 days ago
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools interim superintendent addresses budget deficit
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (WGHP) — Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Interim Superintendent Catty Moore faced the media on Tuesday afternoon for the first time since her appointment.
Moore was straightforward in her answers and admitted to a new discovery posing more financial challenges on top of the $42 million deficit.
The district, in conjunction with HIL Consultants, has been doing a deep dive into their books and learned there are discrepancies in federal withholding stretching back to at least 2021.
FOX8 spoke to Moore and asked if she could quantify the problem.
'I can tell you we are looking into an issue with the IRS and federal withholding,' Moore said.
Moore said the district and its financial consultants are still digging into years of financial records and have identified an issue with how taxes were collected that might cause the $42 million deficit to increase.
She said the board was quickly notified of the potential tax withholding issue, and the research is ongoing into exactly how much it entails.
'The fact that it goes back to 2021 … makes you wonder about what the number could be,' Moore said. 'As I've looked at what I know right now, it's happening at transition times with staff in those offices. We know business continuity is incredibly important, and when you have high turnover and transition of staff, things get missed.'
Moore is now tasked with battling the budget and helping the district find better footing before handing the job off to the new superintendent.
'There is good work that's happening, and you've got to deal with the fire that's biggest in front of you, but there is a lot of good work that's happening in the district that needs to continue,' Moore said.
Moore's plan to reduce the deficit can be read below.
24-25-and-25-26-Budget-update-for-the-Board-June-10-BOE-Meeting-1-1Download
On May 23, the school district posted a community budget update to its website, addressing the deficit, which it said stemmed from falling enrollment and reductions in state and federal funding.
State auditor's office investigates Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools' finances
At the time, the district said, 'The current estimated shortfall is approximately $42 million, meaning the budget has been overspent by about 5.3 percent.'
WS/FCS noted that it had identified $23.3 million in savings for next year with a total goal of finding $36.3 million in savings.
The district has teamed up with an outside consulting firm, HIL Consultants, to work towards balancing the budget for the 2024-2025 fiscal year, which ends on June 30.
The district requested a one-time $32 million loan from the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners on June 5, which the board rejected. WS/FCS's proposed budget of $180 million was approved for the next fiscal year, and the commissioners agreed to a payment plan for an existing $5 million debt that the school district owed them. The district owes about $18 million to the state as well.
With the loan denied, the school district said it could allocate money from next year's $180 million to cover part of the deficit.
Superintendent Tricia McManus retired at the end of the 2024-2025 school year, with Catty Moore taking over the role on an interim basis. WS/FCS Chief Financial Officer Thomas Kranz will resign effective June 30.
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