Idaho School District Sees a Budget Surplus

COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho (AP) — Officials with the Coeur d'Alene School District say the preliminary results of an audit show the district has an unexpected budget surplus.

Superintendent Matt Handelman told the Coeur d'Alene Press that the district normally maintains a balance of 5 percent of the total budget to use in case of emergencies, but an auditing firm found the balance is actually at least $856,000 higher than expected.

The school board and the teachers' union have already agreed on how to spend some of that money. The district's contingency reserve will get a boost, some of the money will go to partially reduce an increase in family insurance premiums and some will go to bus costs. Another portion will be used as a one-time payment to employees.