School District employees will receive some additional compensation next year, as the Governing Board approved a one-time 2.5 percent pay raise for returning staff.

The board May 13 unanimously approved the salary increase, capping off several discussions on the matter from previous meetings.

The idea of a pay increase was on the table, but board members did not want to make a vote until a budget based on more firm figures could be provided.

Due to the many uncertainties that surround a district budget on an annual basis, this across-the-board pay increase for returning classified and certified employees next school year has been approved for one year.

Budget approved

A revised version of the district budget was also approved during the May 13 meeting, though the inclusion of a $240,000 capital transfer request did not seem to sit well with the board.

Executive Director of Business and Support Services Lisa Martinez presented the revised budget, explaining that the figure was tied to annual compensated absences.

“This figure is always hard to plan for,” Martinez explained.

“Whether it be separations, retirement, unused vacations, whatever, these are things our employees still have to be compensated for.”

In a conversation following the meeting, Superintendent Tom Lawrence said that compensated absences are a standard item for the budget but, with an older staff, FHUSD has a higher number of retirements/separations as of late.

Add in tenure of staff and potentially decades of time within the district, and that compensation can add up when multiple employees leave at once.

“The $240,000 capital transfer was requested as a worst case scenario,” Lawrence explained.

“Contracts are still out and not due back until [this] week, so we won’t know the actual figure until then. But the budget has to be approved by a certain deadline, so we have to project what we think that number will be.”

Lawrence further explained that if any of the capital transferred for compensation is not used, it will then carry over into the next year’s budget.

“I’ve looked back as far as 2003 and, traditionally, we’ve been at around $300,000 for that figure. We’ve done our best to minimize it in recent years, since the state Legislature is doing away with our capital funds. I think we had it as low as $100,000 a couple of years ago.”

Other changes to the revised budget included SRP and water increases, the bond sales that were recently finalized and plugged in, as well as a correction to the classroom site fund allocation. In the end, the revised budget totaled $12,173,960.

The revised budget was approved unanimously.