With a proposed general fund budget of $334 million, the St. Tammany Parish School System spends thousands in revenue to educate each child in the parish.

Thursday at 6 p.m. at the Schoen Administrative Complex, 321 N. Theard St., Covington, a public hearing will be held on the proposed budget for this school year. The public is invited and encouraged to attend to express their opinions about how their money is spent.

Director of Business Affairs Brett Stoltz said the budget for fiscal year 2008-09 contains about 1 to 1 1/2 percent increase over 2007-08. This reflects the normal growth subsequent to Hurricane Katrina. Some of the changes in general fund expenditures for the coming year include:

• Local ($1,000) and state ($1,019) funded teacher pay raises;

• Local pay raises and state salary supplement (one-time of $1,000) for non-certified personnel;

• Addition of six teaching positions for regular education;

• Addition of 3.5 teaching positions for special education;

• Increased school instructional budgets of $5 per student;

• Increased bus driver operational pay of $1,200 annually;

• Increased allowances for operational reimbursement for bus drivers of $1.2 million to allow for higher fuel prices;

• Addition of two bus routes for the transportation department;

• Additional funding for the principal position at the new high school for the second semester;

• Increased school operational allowances from $25 per student to $32.50 per student, an increase of $7.50 per student; • Increase of work time for all assistant principals to a minimum of 200 days.

The general fund revenue in the 2008-09 budget includes a 5 percent increase in property tax collection. This is a reassessment year, and the projected increase is based on new property coming onto the tax rolls and rolling back the millage rate. The first 3 percent is available for spending, and the remaining 2 percent will be used to support the bond rating, as is School Board policy.

The MFP fund, the amount paid by the state to the school district, is expected to increase by $5 million, including the state money for teacher pay raises.

Stoltz said the budget is determined every year through a process of budget requests and needs from each department. The “general fund” is the normal expenditures of the school district and is funded about 55 percent by the state and about 44 percent by local taxes, including sales tax, property tax and interest. Federal funding amounts to about 1 percent.

Amounts are projected based on expected funding for the next year, including growth, millage rates, sales tax revenue and economic trends.

There is an account for each fund, and expenditures are based upon revenue from that fund. For example, there is a separate budget allotted for revenue generated from the 1966 1 cent permanent sales tax that provides funding for the general fund and school food services fund for operating expenses.

There is also a separate fund to service and retire long-term debt.

Money in each fund cannot be mingled or combined with revenue from another fund. Instead, each fund is restricted to pay for the intended services provided.