LAND O’ LAKES – Pasco County Schools Superintendent John Legg told members of the school board April 1 that the budget forecast for the district is “not looking favorable.”
“We’re heading into the peak legislative time of year,” Legg told the school board. “I want to say this delicately. I want to say for 48 out of the 52 weeks of the year, I don’t get wrapped up into the drama of what the legislature does.”
But Legg told school board members now is the time to pay close attention, particularly to bills that start to see action in those four specific weeks.
“Over the next four weeks, there’s going to be a lot of action happening,” Legg said. “It will have an impact on our budget. It will have an impact on our policies. It will have an impact on our strategic planning on how we go forward on some of these initiatives.”
This budget cycle will be interesting because the district won’t have Elementary and Secondary Schools Emergency Relief Funds. These federal dollars were distributed to overcome impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic.
District 4 representative Jessica Wright credited Legg with keeping the school board focused when it comes to legislation. She said one of her biggest frustrations is reading media coverage about issues that stress staff and families out that never make it to the governor’s desk.
Wright and her colleagues were in Tallahassee during spring break for a conference of school board members. Being in the capital allowed them to have dialogue with Pasco County’s state legislators.
“We were able to meet with almost everybody on our delegation and they really took the time to have authentic conversations with us and really understand the different barriers we face and what we can do to reduce some of those barriers so that our students have access to high quality education,” Wright said.
District 5 rep Megan Harding said there were meaningful discussions on sidewalks, hazardous walkways, transportation and school safety issues in Tallahassee.
Harding said board members have ongoing communication with the legislative delegation. She has updated state leaders on school openings during Hurricane Helene, invited them to district events and discussed issues that need fixing.
Harding said legislators also reach out to the board to get feedback about issues that come across their desks.
Legg also told the school board that staff is starting to look at planning for next year. Legg would like to start updating the district’s strategic plan and goals.
“This is not revamping what we already have established,” Legg said. “This is looking at updating our measurables.”
Staff will try to get feedback from school board members individually and collectively toward the end of the fourth quarter to have measurables in place by next school year, Legg said.
