* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:02:12] CAN YOU ALL HEAR US NOW? YES, I CAN NOW. OKAY. SORRY. THANK, SO, UH, I WAS, IT, IT IS ESPECIALLY INTEREST TO THE MAY RIVER BAND BECAUSE THIS IS A MAJOR FUNCTION AND A FORMER BAND DIRECTOR AT MAY RIVER IS AT THIS CONTEST JUDGING NATIONAL COMPETITION SCREEN. THOSE JUDGES EITHER HAVE A, THE BEST, UH, THE BEST SEAT IN THE HOUSE, IN THE PRO, IN THE PRESS BOX, OR THEY ARE, THERE ARE TWO JUDGES ACTUALLY ON THE GROUND WATCHING THE BAND AND THE MAY RIVER BAND. THE, SO FRESHMEN AND SOPHOMORES HAVE HAD PERSONAL CONTACT WITH THIS GENTLEMAN. HE WAS A BAND DIRECTOR FOUR OR FIVE YEARS AGO AND GAVE, UH, HE THIS HERE BECAUSE HIS WIFE'S THE PRIMARY GRAVE RENTER. AND, UH, HE TOOK THE JOB THAT RESIGNED AFTER HE REALIZED THERE WAS NO FUTURE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, SIR. AND I APPRECIATE YOUR INTEREST. WE, WE, BY POLICY, DON'T RESPOND, UH, TO PUBLIC COMMENTS DURING THE MEETING, BUT IF YOU WOULD PLEASE, PLEASE, UH, CONTACT ME. I'LL GIVE YOU A CARD. I, I WOULD LIKE TO, UH, HAVE YOU AND I GIVE YOUR, COPY ME, GIVE YOU SOME INFORMATION, THANK YOU ABOUT, ABOUT THE PROCESS. IF YOU CONTACT ME, IF MY EMAIL IS ON, I UNDERSTAND. I, AND WE'LL FIGURE OUT SOME TIME. THANK YOU MUCH. OKAY. THANK YOU. AND I UNDERSTAND WHAT I WANT. USE GONNA COME UP LATER. A MEETING OF FREEDOM OR, THANK YOU. OKAY. THANK YOU SIR. YOU BET. I NEED A MOTION TO APPROVE THE OCTOBER 18TH, 2024 COMMITTEE MEETING. MINUTES. I WILL SECOND THAT MOTION. ANY DISCUSSION? NO DISCUSSION. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE. AYE. OPPOSED? A OKAY. THE NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA IS THE [00:05:04] MONTHLY BOARD OF EDUCATION BUDGET. AND PUT THAT UP ON THE SCREEN. AND THERE WE GO. AND YOU'LL SEE THAT, UH, OVERALL OUR BUDGET IS AT 26.3% EXPENDED, AND WE'RE MORE THAN A FIRST QUARTER, SO WE ARE UNDER BUDGET. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ON THE BOARD OF EDUCATION BUDGET? UH, I WENT THROUGH IT. I DIDN'T SEE ANYTHING THAT'S CONCERNING AT ALL. WELL UNDER BUDGET IN ALL AREAS. SO UNLESS THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS FROM OTHER BOARD MEMBERS THAT ARE ON, UH, DR. CARR, DO YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS? NO. HAPPY TO BE WITH YOU. UH, I LOOKED AT THIS THE OTHER DAY, SO I'M, SO FAR SO GOOD. GOOD. UM, MR. DALLAS, DO YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS ON NO, SIR. A GOOD ACHIEVEMENT IN TERMS OF BEING ON THE TARGET? I THINK MS. BOATRIGHT IS ON. THAT'S JUST, SHE'S NOT ON. OKAY. ALRIGHT. WE'LL GO ON TO THE NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA, WHICH IS THE SEPTEMBER, 2024 TRANSPARENCY REPORT. WHAT UP THE, UH, THIS ONE FIRST HERE, DO YOU HAVE IT? YEAH. OKAY. UH, FOR THE, FOR THE PUBLIC, THIS IS CONSOLIDATED REPORT THAT SHOWS ALL EXPENDITURES, UH, TO . AND IT IS CONSOLIDATED TO SHOW TOTALS BY, UH, MAJOR ENTITIES THAT DO BUSINESS WITH THE, UH, DISTRICT, AS YOU'LL SEE, THE FIRST ONE IS THE TYCO FIRE SECURITY MANAGEMENT INCORPORATED. AND TOTAL, UH, IN THAT MONTH, MONTH OF SEPTEMBER, WE SPENT, UH, $200,000 WITH THEM. THIS IS ALL PAYABLE BY CHECK, AND YOU SEE THE CHECK NUMBERS AND SO ON. UH, MR. CAMPBELL, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON THIS REPORT? UH, MR. CARR, DO YOU HAVE ANY? YOU JUST WALKED AWAY. MR. DALLAS, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON THIS REPORT? NO, SIR. MR. CHAIR OR DR. CARR? I'M GOOD, THANK YOU. OKAY. UH, I DIDN'T HAVE ANY QUESTIONS. THIS IS A, MR. SMITH JUST ARRIVED. I DIDN'T HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON, UH, THAT CONSOLIDATION REPORT. THERE'S ALSO, IF YOU'RE PUT UP THIS REPORT, IT'S ANOTHER LOOK AT THE A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS AND OVER REPORT. AND THIS REPORT IS VALUABLE AND IT SHOWS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WHAT WE, UH, SPENT IN SEPTEMBER, 2023 AND WHAT WE SPENT LAST SEPTEMBER, 2024, TWO PAGES. GET THAT BROUGHT UP HERE IN A MOMENT. THERE YOU GO. OKAY, MR. CAMPBELL, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON THIS, UH, REPORT? DR. CARR, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON THIS? NO QUESTIONS AT THE PRESENT. MR. DALLAS, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON THE REPORT? NO. UH, NO, SIR. MR. CHAIR. I DID NOTE THE MB CONN THE SIGNIFICANT INCREASE, BUT IT WAS EXPLAINED, UH, IN THE, IN [00:10:01] THE COMMENTARY, SO THANKS FOR THAT. MR. SMITH, DO YOU HAVE ANY COMMENT ON BEFORE? NOT OKAY. IF I NOTICED THAT WE HAVE SOME INCREASES, UH, A BM INDUSTRIES SIGNIFICANT INCREASE, BUT THAT'S BECAUSE OF THE DIFFERENT MAINTENANCE SERVICES CONTRACT. AND, UH, MB CON, AS THE, AS DALLAS MENTIONED, THAT'S JUST SIMPLY MORE CONSTRUCTION, UH, GOING ON WITH THE NEW REFERENDUM AND THE NUTRITION TOTAL WENT UP A GREAT DEAL. COULD YOU GIMME A, A LITTLE REASON WHY IT WENT UP? UH, ACTUALLY IT WENT UP MORE THAN DOUBLE. UM, THAT'S BECAUSE THIS IS FOR THE MONTH OF THE PAYMENTS MADE IN SEPTEMBER WERE FOR THE MONTH OF AUGUST AND AUGUST THE STARTED SCHOOL WEEK EARLIER, THERE WERE MORE DAYS OF MORE DAYS MORE FOOD, MORE COST. OKAY. I GOT THAT. UH, OUR INSURANCE ON THE SECOND PAGE, OUR INSURANCE, UH, COSTS WENT UP AND WE EXPECTED THAT WACKEN BUSH ARCHITECTS, UH, WENT UP BECAUSE, UH, THEY DIDN'T HAVE THE FRONT CONTRACTORS ON A LOT OF THE NEW REFERENDUM GOING ON. SO THAT WAS EXPECTED. THE SA TEACHERS, UH, STUFF HAS GONE UP. SOURCE TEACHERS. RIGHT. AND THE, OUR RETIREMENTS COST WENT UP, WHICH WE EXPECTED. THOMPSON TURNER CONSTRUCTION WENT UP JUST A LITTLE BIT, EVEN THOUGH THEY HAVE ADDITIONAL CONSTRUCTION, UH, RESPONSIBILITY. UH, SAME WITH TRUSTMARK. VOLUNTARY BENEFITS. WE KNEW THAT WAS GOING TO GO UP. AND IT HAS, AND THOMPSON TURNER HAS GONE UP BECAUSE OF MORE WORK. THE TYCO FIRE AND SECURITY MANAGEMENT WAS NOT, UH, PAID FOR THIS TIME, UH, LAST YEAR. AND I, I HAVE SOME QUESTIONS ON THAT WHEN WE GET TO IT. AND THE DOCUMENT, THE BIG DOCUMENT, THE, THE, UH, MICRO VIEW OF OUR FINANCIAL, WE TALKED ABOUT THAT. YES, SIR. I HAVE A QUESTION IN, IN TERMS OF ESS GOING UP. UM, UH, CAN WE SAY WHY ESS IS GOING UP? BECAUSE, UH, I'VE HAD SOME PHONE CALLS RECENTLY ABOUT, UH, SUBS NOT GETTING PAID FROM ESS. AND SO, UH, IS THAT BECAUSE THEY'VE SENT US SOME BILL, MAYBE, OR, OR, OR WHAT THAT, WHAT THAT IS? AND, AND I, AND IT IS A FINANCE DEPARTMENT FOR ME WITH THAT, UM, WE PROCESS THEIR PAYMENTS, UH, AS SOON AS WE RECEIVE THEM. WE HAVE A REVIEW PROCESS. SO WE DO HAVE TO MATCH UP A, A NUMBER OF ITEMS. THIS TO ME, LOOKS LIKE TWO BILLS WERE PAID FOR TWO MONTHS. THE BILLS WERE PAID FOR IN, IN THE SAME MONTH. UM, SO PERHAPS, UH, ONE AT THE VERY BEGINNING OF THE MONTH, ONE AT THE VERY END OF THE MONTH. SO, UM, ON THAT, WHAT YOU MADE WITH FOOD SERVICE, WE STARTED SCHOOL EARLIER THIS YEAR TOO, WHICH WILL INCREASE. UM, YES. ALSO, UM, SOME OF THE, UH, INCREASES. WE REDID THE CONTRACT WITH EFS FOR SEPTEMBER STARTING, SO THE RATES DID INCREASE. WE WENT BACK OUT. ESS WAS AWARDED AGAINST, BUT AGAIN, SAME TIME THAT COMES OUT WITH A BID, WE CAN EXPECT RATE ENTRY THAT, SO THEY'RE NOT IN OUR PAYROLL. THEY, THESE FOLKS ARE ON THE CONTRACT PAYROLL. SO IF YOU HAVE PEOPLE COMING TO YOU THAT ARE SUBS THAT ARE NOT GETTING PAID, WE NEED TO CONTACT THE CONTRACTOR AND SEE IF THERE'S A PROBLEM. AND, AND I'D LIKE YOU ALL TO DO THAT. GIVE THEM A CALL, FIND OUT, ASK THEM, ARE YOU HAVING A PROBLEM WITH YOUR PAYROLL? 'CAUSE WE'VE HEARD SOME COMPLAINTS THAT SUBS ARE NOT GETTING PAID. IS YOUR PARTICULAR LOCATION THAT, THAT WAS ASKED? UH, SEVERAL OCCASIONS. I, I'VE HEARD SOME FROM, UH, NOT JUST, NO, NO. I'VE HEARD SOME FROM AND I, I'VE HEARD SOME FROM THE, UH, BLUFFER AS WELL, UH, A AS THE, UH, LADY MAYBE, UH, AT ESS, UH, THAT THEY WERE NOT GETTING PAID AND, AND THAT THEY WERE, SOME PEOPLE WERE, WERE TALKING, TALKING IN ON THEIR PHONES. UH, AND, AND, AND, AND THAT WAS THE NORMAL THING. AND THAT THEY WERE NOT GETTING PAID. THAT THEY WERE, UH, THEY WERE UNAWARE OF THAT THIS, THAT THE STAFF WERE NOT, NOT GETTING PAID ABOUT 2, 2, 3 WEEKS. UH, 2, 2, 2, 3 CHECKS BEHIND. SO THAT'S, THAT'S, THAT'S PRETTY, UH, SERIOUS. I, AND WE NOT PAY THEM ON TIME OR WHAT, WHAT WAS GOING ON. AND THAT'S WHY WHEN YOU SAID THAT YOU PAID THAT LARGE, OKAY, WELL MAYBE THEY, THEY GET PAID BECAUSE WE DIDN'T PAY. I'M TRYING MANAGES THAT CONTRACT AND WE'LL GET, UM, GOOD. APPRECIATE. GOOD. OKAY. LET'S GO TO THE NEXT ITEM, WHICH [00:15:01] IS THE TRANSPARENCY REPORT. UH, MR. CAMPBELL, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON THAT? UH, NO. I DON'T, I DON'T ADMIT, UH, ONLINE FOLKS HAD A CHANCE TO GO THROUGH IT. IT'S, UH, 84 PAGES, BUT I DID, SO I'M GONNA GO THROUGH MY NORMAL THING. FIRST OF ALL, I WANNA MENTION AMAZON PURCHASES. IN SEPTEMBER, WE MADE 538 INDIVIDUAL PURCHASES FROM AMAZON. UH, STAPLES WAS ABOUT THE SAME NUMBER FROM, FROM, UH, INVOICE NUMBER 1 63 TO 7 0 1. NOW, I WANT THE PUBLIC TO UNDERSTAND THAT WE ALWAYS TRY TO USE LOCAL VENDORS FOR OUR PRODUCT OR OUR PURCHASES WHEN WE CAN. BUT CAN YOU IMAGINE THE PRODUCTIVITY INCREASE FOR OUR STAFF AND FACULTY WHEN THEY USE AMAZON, THEY CAN JUST SIMPLY PUT THE ITEM THAT THEY DESIRE AND IT COMES RIGHT UP. THEY DON'T HAVE TO GO FROM STORE TO STORE TO SEE IF IT'S THERE, SO WHATEVER. SO THE PRODUCTIVITY ADVANTAGES OF USING, UH, AMAZON AND STAPLES, FOR EXAMPLE, ARE HUGE. AND ALSO THE, WHAT I WOULD WANT TO PUT ON THE RECORD, THOUGH, AMAZON AND STAPLES OFTEN HAVE SIMILAR PRODUCTS. I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE SURE THAT THE DISTRICT IS DOING SOME COMPARISON SHOPPING FOR COST BETWEEN AMAZON AND STAPLES. THAT'S JUST A SIMPLE CLICK TO BE ABLE TO SEE IF THEY COULD GET IT FROM STAPLES FOR CHEAPER. AND THEY HAD TO DO THAT. OKAY? SO THAT WAS ONE THING THAT I MENTIONED. I SAW THERE ON PAGE 15, UM, APPLE COMPUTER, WE PAID $6,291 AND 60 CENTS TO ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS OR APPLE. AND, UH, THAT'S, WHEN I GO THROUGH THIS, I LOOK FOR UNUSUAL THINGS, AND THAT WAS UNUSUAL, AND THE PRICE WAS IDENTICAL FOR ALL THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS, $6,291 AND 6 CENTS. BUT WOULD YOU ASK TECHNOLOGY TO SEND ME AN EMAIL AND TO THE OTHER MEMBERS OF THE BOARD HERE OF WHAT THAT WAS? OKAY. TYPICALLY, APPLE PRODUCTS ARE USED IN THE, THE, UH, YOUNGER THAN TWO SECOND GRADE. RIGHT? THAT'S WHY I'M, I'M, I, UM, SO THAT WILL MOST LIKELY BE THAT. BUT YES, I WILL CONTACT . OKAY. UH, PAGE 17 AND 18. THIS IS, THIS IS KIND OF ANOTHER ONE FOR, UH, THE OPERATIONS COMMITTEE. MR. DALLAS IS, UH, WHEN I LOOK AT THAT, PAGE 17 AND 18 IS BUFORD WASH WATER AND SEWER AUTHORITY, UHHUH , AND I'M LOOKING AT LADIES ISLAND MIDDLE SCHOOL. THEIR BILL WAS $6,581. WELL, BRANCH'S BILL WAS 10,543. WHEN I GO THROUGH THIS, I LOOK AT WHO THE VENDOR IS, I LOOK AT, THEN I GO, GO AND LOOK AT THE COST, THE PRICE THAT WE PAID. AND I SEE WHEN I SEE OUTLIERS, AND I SEE OUTLIERS IN BUFORD, WASH BEAUFORT, JASPER WATER AND SEWER, OR LADIES ISLAND ELEMENTARY, OR LADIES, SORRY, LADIES ISLAND MIDDLE SCHOOL AND HILL BRANCH HIGH SCHOOL. SO I'D LIKE THE OPERATIONS COMMUNITY TO LOOK INTO THAT AND SEE IF WE HAVE AN OPERATIONS ISSUE THAT'S CAUSING THOSE WATER AND SEWER BILLS TO BE FAR AND EXCEED THE REST OF, UH, THE SCHOOLS, YOUR HONOR. YEAH, COLONEL, UM, MR. CHAIR, WE, WE DEFINITELY HAVE ADDED A PROCESS CHECK, UH, THAT WILL BE, UH, TAKING PLACE IN FUTURE REPORTS WHERE THE OFFICE GROUP WILL BE REACHING OUT TO FINANCE TO REVIEW THESE, UH, SPECIFICALLY THOSE THAT APPEAR, UH, TO BE OUT OF THE NORM. SO ABSOLUTELY, WE TAKE THAT ON. AND, AND THAT WAS TRIGGERED BY YOUR RAISING IN THIS POINT IN A PRIOR MEETING. AND SO WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE WE RESPOND. SO NO PROBLEM WHATSOEVER. WE'RE ON IT. APPRECIATE THAT. THANK, THANK YOU. UH, MR. DALLAS, NEXT ITEM IS PAGE 31. I GO THROUGH THIS AND I LOOK, THIS IS [00:20:01] RE EMPLOYEE REIMBURSEMENT. OKAY. AND I, WE HAD A LOT OF THEM, BUT NUMBER, UH, 1588 AND 1589 ON PAGE 31, EMPLOYEE EMPLOYEE REIMBURSEMENTS, $955. AND THAT SAYS SCHOOL BOARD. AND THAT'S TWICE, TWO, TWO PAYMENTS, EXACT SAME AMOUNT, $955 AND 48 CENTS. IS THIS A DOUBLE ENTRY? DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THIS, ROBIN, WHAT THIS COULD BE? SO FOR BOTH OF YOU. FOR BOTH OF YOU, ALRIGHT. ALRIGHT. THAT MAKES SENSE. YEAH. RIGHT. GOT IT. OKAY. GOOD. PAGE 43. I'M ALWAYS, WHEN I SEE BOARD OF EDUCATION ON , I CAN ALWAYS LOOK AT THAT, SEE WHAT THAT IS ALL ABOUT. PAGE 43, I LOOKED DOWN, AND OF COURSE I LOOKED AT THE VENDOR AND I SAW THE VOTE RIGHT GROUP. I SAID, UH OH, WE HAVE A CONFLICT OF INTEREST. BUT THEN I LOOKED AT IT A LITTLE FURTHER AND I SAW IT'S FOR RACCOON TRAFFIC. I THINK I'M PRETTY CONFIDENT THAT INGRID'S BOATRIGHT IS NOT INVOLVED IN, IN THAT PAGE NUMBER 43. YEAH. NUMBER. OH, OKAY. WHAT WAS THE VENDOR'S NAME? THE VOTE, RIGHT? BOATRIGHT GROUP RACCOON TRAFFIC. OKAY. PAGE 44. UH, AND I'LL GIVE YOU THE, THE, UH, INVOICE NUMBERS 2175. THIS IS AN ACTIVITY BUS FOR, IT'S MAY RIVER HIGH SCHOOL, $174,135 IN CAPITAL FUND. NOW, I UNDERSTAND THAT'S A CAPITAL INVESTMENT, BUT I HAD NO IDEA THAT OUR, OUR ACTIVITY BUSES COST THAT MUCH. UH, YOU'VE BEEN SLOWLY, UM, YOU THINK, UH, REPLACING THOSE BUSES OVER THE FEW YEARS WHEN LEAD TIME IS ANYWHERE FROM NINE MONTHS TO 18 MONTHS, DEPENDING ON PRODUCTION. MM-HMM. . UM, AND OF COURSE, YOU KNOW HOW ANYTHING CAN AFFECT PRODUCTION. UH, BUT WE DO GO OUT FOR BID FOR THOSE, AND WE TAKE THE LOWEST BID WITH THE PS THAT WE REQUIRE FOR THOSE ACTIVITY BUSES. AND THAT'S, UM, A COMPETITIVE PRICE. OKAY. KINDA GOT MY INTEREST BECAUSE I RECEIVED AN EMAIL FROM SOMEBODY, A VENDOR, UH, SAYING WE OUGHT TO BE BUYING ELECTRIC BUSES. AND, UH, I BASICALLY SENT BACK TO HIM AND SAID, WELL, OUR SCHOOL BUSES ARE ALL PAID FOR, UH, BY THE STATE, BUT THEY, OUR YELLOW BUSES, UH, I SAID, I DON'T KNOW, YOU KNOW, WHAT THE STATE CONTACT THE STATE DO THAT. I SAID, ACTIVITY BUSES. WE, WE MAY LOOK AT IT, BUT I DON'T KNOW. THAT'S, THAT'S NO, UH, OBLIGATION FOR US TO LOOK AT IT. BUT I JUST WANNA LET YOU KNOW THAT THERE ARE SOME THAT PEOPLE THAT WANT AND THEY SAY THERE'S A GRANT THAT YOU CAN GET IT FOR A BETTER PRICE. SO I WANTED THE PROCUREMENT TO KIND OF BE AWARE OF THAT. THERE MIGHT BE, UH, A GRANT OPPORTUNITY. WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO GET AN ELECTRIC BUS, BUT THAT'S SOMETHING YOU THINK ABOUT WHEN YOU GO ELECTRIC, IS YOU HAVE TO BUILD ELECTRIC CHARGING CHARGING STATIONS ACROSS THE COUNTY. SO MULTIPLE PLACES. UM, AND THEN THEY HAVE TO HAVE ELECTRIC CHARGING STATIONS FROM HERE TO CHARLESTON OR HERE TO WHEREVER. YEAH. BUT WHERE THEIR RANGE IS, THEIR RANGES. SO THEY HAVE TO ARRANGE FOR A CHARGING THERE. YEAH. YEAH. THERE'S A LOT TIMEFRAME TO DO IT WITH. RIGHT. BUT, UM, JUST ONE SLIGHT, UM, UM, THE STATE DOES PAY FOR THE MAJORITY OF OUR YELLOW BUSES, BUT WE BOUGHT 40 BUSES, UH, YELLOW BUSES, UH, SEVERAL YEARS AGO. IT'S ALMOST BEEN, I WOULD SAY, UH, ALMOST 10 YEARS AGO. YEAH. AND SO THEY ARE COMING NEW FOR, YOU KNOW, WE ARE LOOKING AT POTENTIAL REPLACEMENT IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS, UM, OR A SERIES OF THEM OVER TIME. SO, UM, I [00:25:01] BELIEVE THAT, UM, MR. OTTING, HE MANAGES THAT. UM, BUT THAT IS, UH, WE DID A LEASE PURCHASE. IT'S, THEY'RE FULLY PAID FOR. UM, BUT THAT IS SOMETHING THAT IS GOING TO BE A NEED IN THE FUTURE. THAT'S VERY INTERESTING BECAUSE I WAS UNDER THE IMPRESSION THAT STATE PURCHASE, I REALIZE WE, I THINK THEY PURCHAS OVER A HUNDRED, BUT 40 OF THEM ARE OURS. OKAY. INTERESTING. OKAY. I, TO GO BACK TO THE QUESTION ABOUT, YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT, ABOUT, ABOUT OUR, OUR ACTIVITY BUSES, WE, WE ASKING ABOUT ACTIVITY BUSES, I KIND OF MISSED OUT REALLY. SO WE HAVE, I'M NOT SURE OF THE NUMBER THAT WE HAVE, BUT WE ARE SLOWLY REPLACING, REPLENISHING THOSE EACH YEAR AS WELL AS THEY AGE. UM, SO WE PURCHASED, UH, AN ACTIVITY BUS THIS YEAR FOR HILTON HIGH SCHOOL. UM, AND IT WAS A COST OF 174,000. THOSE THAT IS THE COST OF THOSE BUSES. THE YELLOW BUSES DON'T COST QUITE AS MUCH AS THESE. UM, BUT YOU KNOW, THAT IS, IT WAS COMPETITIVELY BID AND THAT WAS BELOW BID. AND THEN ALSO, UH, MY, MY, MY QUESTION, MY QUESTION WOULD BE TO THAT, UH, IS HOW, HOW ARE WE, HOW DO WE DECIDE WHERE, WHERE THE BUS GOES AT? THAT WOULD BE A QUESTION FROM MR. . OKAY. SO, UM, EACH SCHOOL ALREADY HAS ALLOCATED BUSES, AND THEY'RE TAKING, I BELIEVE, THE OLDEST AND REPLENISHING THE OLDEST AND, UM, THE ONES WITH MOST MILES AND THAT SORT OF THING. THAT WOULD BE MY THOUGHT PROCESS BEHIND WHAT THEY'RE DOING. BUT ANY ADDITIONAL INFORMATION WE WOULD HAVE THIS. OKAY. THANK YOU. OKAY. DR. CAR, YOUR HANDS UP? YEAH. UH, I'M, I'M MAYBE GOING A DIFFERENT DIRECTION WITH THIS, BUT OFTEN A LATE DAY BUS TO TAKE KIDS HOME AFTER THE REGULAR BUS IS RUN FOR ATHLETICS OR AFTER SCHOOL PROJECTS OR OTHER THINGS, IS CALLED THE ACTIVITY BUS. AND THESE COULD BE RUNNING FROM MULTIPLE SCHOOLS. AND SO MY QUESTION IS, WOULD THIS BE A COST THAT IS DIFFERENT OR ABOVE AND BEYOND WHAT THE REGULAR COSTS FOR BUSING STUDENTS TO AND FROM SCHOOL IS? I'M JUST ASKING THE QUESTION TO FOR MAYBE ANYBODY'S CLARITY REASONS. WHEN WE REPLACED TO DROP FOR ACTIVITY, , HOPE THIS ANSWERS, UH, PART OF YOUR QUESTION. EACH ACTIVITY BUS, UM, THE OLDER ONES HAD DIFFERENT, UM, WRAPPINGS PAINT SCHEMES TO REPRESENT THE SCHOOL. AND WHEN THAT OCCURRED, YOU COULDN'T PUT A WHALE BRANCH TEAM ON A HOOK AND HEAD BUS, UM, AND RUN THEM BACK AND FORTH. NOT ONLY IF IT JUST NOT A MORALE BOOSTER FOR A TEAM AND, AND USING EACH OTHER'S, UM, ACTIVITY BUSES WHEN THEY BROKE DOWN. SO PART OF THIS INITIATIVE WITH REPLACING ALL THE BUSES ARE THE SAME. THEY SAY BEFORD COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT ON THE SIDE, THEY'RE DARKER IN COLORS. SO IF ONE SCHOOL NEEDS TWO ACTIVITY BUSES, BECAUSE THEY HAVE TWO MAJOR SPORTS TEAMS TRAVELING AT THE SAME TIME, WHETHER IT'S TO STATE OR TO RIDGELAND OR SOMEWHERE ELSE THAT THEY'RE GOING, THAT'S FAR. AND IF THE, UH, THEY DON'T HAVE A BUS AVAILABLE BECAUSE OF THE, UM, THE ROUTES WITH CHILDREN GETTING TO AND FROM SCHOOL ANYWAY. UM, THEY CAN USE THESE BUSES AT DIFFERENT SCHOOLS. SO, UM, THEY'RE READILY AVAILABLE TO EVERYONE. OKAY. SO IT'S A SEPARATE FLEET. YES. GOT IT. BUT I, I AM, I AM IN FAVOR OF WHAT YOU SAID, MR. CARR. UH, I, I DO THINK THAT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE POSSIBLY SHOULD SEND TO THE OPERATIONS COMMITTEE BECAUSE THERE IS AN ISSUE GOING ON WITH THESE BUSES. AND I'M NOT SURE THAT THE JUICE IS WORTH THE SQUEEZE IN, IN, IN TERMS OF, UH, THE, THE QUALITY OF THE BUSES VERSUS REGULAR BUSES, BECAUSE IT IS NOT AS THOUGH THEY'RE AS THOUGH THERE ARE, ARE ACTUAL CHARTER BUSES, UH, IN, IN, IN, IN TERMS OF THE PRICE BEING, UH, BEING DIFFERENTLY. I'M NOT SURE THAT WE GETTING MORE BANG FOR, FOR OUR BUCK. SO I THINK THAT IS DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD SELVES OPERATIONS SO THAT WE CAN TELL, THAT WE CAN WAIT AT AND UNDERSTAND WHAT WE ARE ACTUALLY GETTING FOR, FOR, UH, WHAT, WHAT WE'RE SPENDING IN TERMS OF QUESTION HERE, IN TERMS OF TECHNOLOGY, I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING OPERATIONS MR. DALLAS, IS THAT OKAY WITH YOU? WAS THAT TO ME? YES. OH, NO, NO, I UNDERSTAND. THANK YOU. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. UH, NEXT ITEM IS PAGE 45. I SEE KONA ICE IS, UH, I GOT $3,270. SO, UM, I JUST JUST NOTICED THAT PAGE 79 AND GOES TO PAGE 80. THAT THE, THE DOCU INVOICE NUMBERS ARE 3 9 4 2 [00:30:02] AND 3 9, 7 9. FIRE INSECURITY. THIS IS THIS NEW OUTFIT THAT'S IN THERE. UM, 79, THE FIRE INSECURITY. YES. SO THEY, THEY CAME IN AND, AND DID A LOT OF WORK. AND WHEN I, YOU KNOW, I SAW ALL THE WORK AND I'M SURE THEY'RE DOING A GOOD THING. BUT THEN I SEE TWO SCHOOLS, ACTUALLY THREE SCHOOLS, THEY DID A LOT MORE WORK. AND THAT IS, UH, BLUFFTON MIDDLE SCHOOL, MAY RIVER HIGH SCHOOL, AND, UH, PRITCHARD. AND THESE ARE CORRECT DEFICIENCIES AND ANNUAL REPORT. YES. SO WE MUST HAVE HAD IN THOSE THREE SCHOOLS A HECK OF A LOT OF DEFICIENCIES BECAUSE THEY ARE TWO AND THREE AND FOUR TIMES MORE THAN EVEN SIMILAR, THEIR SCHOOLS OF THEIR SIZE. BUT I'LL LET MR. OTTING, UH, SPEAK TO THE SCHEDULE AND THE, OR THE, YEAH, WELL, I SCHOOL, YEAH, BUT I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT OPERATIONS COMMITTEE KNOWS ABOUT THIS. 'CAUSE THIS IS AN OPERATIONS ISSUE. I CAN EXPLAIN A SMALL COURT HELP. YES, YES. UM, THE DESCRIPTIONS, THE ONES THAT ARE LABELED IFB 23 DASH ZERO TWO MM-HMM. , THOSE ARE FOR OUR SERVICES FOR OUR ANNUAL INSPECTIONS. OKAY. AND THEY'RE, ALL SCHOOLS ARE ON OUR ROTATION. WE CAN'T ACCEPT ALL THE SCHOOLS . SO TYPICALLY THIS DOESN'T MAKE THE A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS REPORT, 'CAUSE IT DOESN'T GO OVER THAT. BUT ALL THE WORK ORDERS THAT WERE DONE WERE ISSUED PROBABLY DURING THE INSPECTION. MM-HMM. . AND SO ALL OF THOSE HAD TO BE CORRECTED DURING THEIR ANNUAL INSPECTION. SO NOW IT ALL COMPILED WITH THE REGULAR INSPECTION AND THE REPAIRS THAT HAD TO MEETING BASED ON THE CONTACT. BUT ABSOLUTELY, I WOULD DEFINITELY DIVERGE MR. OTTING FOR MORE DETAILS. YEAH, I I THINK THAT'S AN OPERATIONS COMMITTEE, UH, ISSUED AS THEY AND KIND OF, UM, MAY RIVER HIGH SCHOOL IS ONE OF OUR NEWEST SCHOOLS AND WE HAD $61,000 THAT WE HAD TO DO IN THAT SCHOOL. THAT'S A LITTLE CONCERNING, BUT THAT'S AN OPERATIONS PIECE. UH, MR. DALLAS, IF THAT'S ALRIGHT WITH YOU. I, I ABSOLUTELY, UH, TOTALLY AGREE. AND ONE OF THE THINGS WE HAD DISCUSSED IS THAT THERE BEING A CALIBRATION MEETING AND REVIEW OF FINANCIALS BETWEEN OPS AND FINANCE GOING FORWARD SO THAT WE CAN HAVE READY ANSWERS FOR YOU, WHICH YOUR QUESTIONS ARE VERY APPROPRIATE, AND THANK YOU FOR YOU FOR THAT. SO WE CAN HAVE ANSWERS WHEN THESE THINGS POP UP ALREADY FOR YOU, SIR. NO PROBLEM. THANK YOU. LASTLY, UH, FRAUDULENT CHARGES IS THE LAST ENTRY ON THERE. WE NORMALLY HAVE A COUPLE, THREE OR FOUR THIS TIME. WE ONLY HAVE ONE FRAUDULENT CHARGE. IT WAS A, A STUDENT ACTIVITY THING FOR $2 AND 17 CENTS MAY RIVER HIGH SCHOOL. SO THAT JUST TELLS ME THAT OUR FRAUD ABATEMENT PROGRAM, UH, SEEMS TO BE WORKING PRETTY WELL. BUT ALL OF THESE TRANSACTIONS THAT WE DO, A LOT OF 'EM ON PCARDS AND SO ON, WE ONLY HAD ONE ISSUE AND IT'S FOR STUDENT ACTIVITY. SO, YOU KNOW, WHO KNOWS HOW THE, HOW THAT CAME ABOUT. UH, BUT FOR $2 AND 7 CENTS, I COULD BUY THAT KIND OF A . SO THAT'S GOOD. I KNOW I HAVE A QUESTION. YES, SIR. ON, ON, ON PAGE, ON PAGE 17, UM, THERE WERE SOME LEGAL FEES, HUH? WHAT THE ITEM NUMBER, ITEM NINE? YEAH, YEAH, YEAH, YEAH. ITEM NUMBER IS SEVEN, UH, I BELIEVE IT IS. UH, CORRECT. WHAT'S THE, WHAT'S THE, UH, INVOICE NUMBER? UH, IT'S 10, UH, 10 35 THROUGH 10 40. AND MY QUESTION IS [00:35:01] WHAT KIND OF RETURN BILLING IS THIS? AND, AND, AND ALSO HOW, HOW ARE WE, I I'VE ASKED QUESTIONS BEFORE ABOUT SEEING ALL LEGAL BILLS AND I DON'T REMEMBER SEEING STUFF RIGHT THIS RIGHT HERE. AND, AND WE HAVE A LOT OF ATTORNEY FEES AND, AND, AND IN WHAT POCKET OF, UH, WHAT POCKET IS THIS? ARE THESE FEES BEING PAID OUT? THESE ARE BEING PAID OUT OF THE MAINTENANCE BUDGET, WHICH IS NOT MAINTENANCE SERVICES, BUT IT IS A LEGAL FEE OUT OF, UH, MR. ING'S FACILITIES AND OPERATIONS DIVISION. UM, SO ANY LEGAL MATTERS THAT HE DEALS WITH ARE TYPICALLY HAVE TO DO WITH LAND LIKE EASEMENTS OR LAND PURCHASES OR LAND SALE, THAT SORT OF THING. SO THOSE ARE THE TYPES OF THINGS THAT ARE, UH, FEE IS BILLED FOR, FOR LEGAL TERMS. AND HOW, HOW, HOW ARE WE ABLE TO TRACK THESE? BECAUSE I NOT, I'VE ASKED FOR, I'VE ASKED FOR LEGAL, FOR, UH, ALL LEGAL FEES BEFORE AND I DON'T BELIEVE I'VE SEEN STUFF LIKE THIS. AND SO THIS, THIS KIND OF, THAT WAS A KIND OF A RED FLAG FOR ME. UM, BECAUSE I'VE ASKED FOR ALL LEGAL, ALL LEGAL, UH, FEES THAT THE DISTRICT HAS HAD PAID IN GENERAL FROM THE OUTSIDE OR INSIDE. I DON'T REMEMBER SEEING THAT. SO THEREFORE THAT MEAN THAT, THAT TO ME, TO MY KNOWLEDGE THEN THAT WAS NOT ON, ON, ON THE, ON THE FORM THAT I REQUESTED BECAUSE I, I DON'T REMEMBER EVER, EVER, EVER SEEING THESE TYPE OF LEGAL FEES. SO HOW, HOW, UH, I, I DIDN'T SEE THAT REQUEST, SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT WAS REQUESTED. AND YOU HAVEN'T, WE HAVEN'T ASKED THAT FOR A LONG TIME. RIGHT, RIGHT. BUT MY POINT WAS WHEN I DID REQUEST IT THAT TIME, I NEVER SEE THIS RIGHT HERE. AND SO MY POINT IS THAT THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME AFTER SHE DESCRIBED WHAT THESE FEES ARE, THOSE FEES WERE DONE A PART OF THAT REPORT THAT WAS GENERATED. WE MAY NOT, CAN I ? I'M SORRY. RIGHT. BUT RIGHT. BUT I, I, I, WHEN I, WHEN I, WHEN I ASKED FOR THAT, I, I DIDN'T ASK FOR IT, UH, JUST A MONTH. I'VE ASKED FOR IT FOR A PARTICULAR OF YEAR OF YEAR PERIOD, MY, MY, MY, MY PERIOD FROM ONE YEAR TO ANOTHER YEAR. AND THESE FEES WERE NOT IN THERE. AND SO THAT, THAT, THAT'S WHERE THE CONCERN COMES, COMES IN AT. BECAUSE I ASKED FOR ALL LEGAL FEES. AND THESE ARE LEGAL FEES HERE AS, AS WELL. WHENEVER, IF NOW, OKAY. YEAH. SO MR. MR. SMITH IS RIGHT. HE DID REQUEST THE LEGAL FEES AND I THINK, UM, UH, ATTORNEY CARTILAGE PROVIDED THAT. THE DOCUMENT I RECALL WAS THAT IT WAS IN REFERENCE TO MR. SMITH'S REQUEST FOR INTERNAL AS WELL AS EXTERNAL, UH, LEGAL FEES. AND I THINK THAT WAS PROVIDED. I THINK WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE IS THIS IS A MUCH MORE DETAILED REPORT, AND WE'RE GETTING INTO SPECIFICS WHERE I THINK THAT REPORT INCLUDED MORE OF THE HEADLINES OF THE GROUPING OF THE VARIOUS LEGAL FEES. SO I THINK THAT'S, THAT'S WHERE THE DISCREPANCY IS GETTING IN. BUT AS NOTED HERE, YOU SHOULD, WE ARE SEEING ALL OF THE LEGAL FEES THAT ARE BASICALLY CHARGED OPERATIONS, I THINK'S IN CO COLUMN, UH, FIVE OR 4, 1, 2, 3, 4. YEAH. SO YOU SEE OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE AND, AND SO THOSE CAN THAT REQUIRE LEGAL WORK? UH, AN EXAMPLE IS WHEN WE'RE GETTING AN EASEMENT OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE TRYING TO BE VERY THOROUGH. SO WE, WE DO REQUEST THAT LEGAL SUPPORT AND OVER OVERSIGHT, NOT ALL THE WAY DOWN BY DETAIL, GOT , NOT PAID PERMIT COVER OPERATIONS. THEY COVER A LOBBY, THEY COVER OTHER THINGS FOR THE REPORTS THAT, THAT MR. DO IS TALKING ABOUT THE REPORT OF ALL INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL. BUT YOU CANNOT GET IN DETAIL OF WHAT BURN FIRM IT WAS FOR. THIS FIRM WAS FOR LOBBYING THE, OF THE COMPANY, DECIDING OUTSIDE THAT WAS THE REPORT. YOU, THAT'S, BUT I THINK THAT I RE I REQUEST IT TO BE BREAK DOWN AS, AS, AS, AS WHAT IS ON, ON HERE. BUT, UM, THAT, THAT'S POSSIBLE. I WILL GO WITH WHAT MY, MY, MY, UH, COLLEAGUES HAVE, HAVE, HAVE SAID. AND, UH, UH, BUT I, BUT TO ME, I, I, TO ME, UH, IN THE FUTURE, THIS IS MORE ALIGNED THOUGH. I'M ASKING FEES SO I CAN UNDERSTAND EXACTLY WHERE THE FEES ARE GOING FOR AND, AND, AND WHAT THE FEES ARE EXACTLY GOING TO, BECAUSE THIS IS MORE DETAILED, THIS IS MORE APPROPRIATE, UH, TO UNDERSTAND WHAT I'M ASKING FOR. I MEAN, I UNDERSTAND MR. QUESTION, BUT WHAT I'M ASKING FOR A, A PERIOD OF TIME, OR IT'S ONE, THREE OR FOUR OR FIVE YEARS, [00:40:01] I'M TRYING TO UNDERSTAND, UNDERSTAND, UH, HOW MUCH MONEY WE WE'RE SPENDING AND MUCH MONEY WE UTILIZING FOR CERTAIN SERVICES. AND TO HAVE TO GO THROUGH AND LOOK AND LOOK FOR IT IS DIFFERENT VERSUS HAVING IT ALL FACTUAL THERE THAT'S BEEN PROVIDED BY STAFF AND, AND, AND BASICALLY ALL THE EVIDENCE AND EVERYTHING IS THERE. YOU CAN MAKE A MORE SOUND DECISION BASED UPON HOW WE'RE SPENDING TAXPAYER'S MONEY, , THAT'S ALL. THANK WE CAN ADDRESS YOUR ISSUES. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. THE NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA IS THE FIRST QUARTER FINANCIAL REPORT. THIS REPORT IS FOR THE MONTH, JULY, AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER OF 2024. SO, UH, QUARTER ENDED SEPTEMBER 30. UM, SO, UH, FIRST QUARTER, AS YOU CAN SEE, UM, LOCAL TAX REVENUE IS VERY SMALL CONSIDERING, UM, WE ARE WAITING ON TAX BILLING TO OCCUR IN OCTOBER, NOVEMBER. MAJORITY OF THOSE TAX BILLS WILL GO OUT BY THEN AND REVENUES WILL START STREAMING IN AT THE END OF, UH, MID DECEMBER AND JANUARY. SO WE ARE AT COLLECTED AT 5.9 MILLION OR 2.7% AS OF THIS POINT IN THE YEAR PRIOR TO THE YEAR COLLECTIONS WERE A LITTLE HIGHER AT 3.2%, WHICH MAKES SENSE BECAUSE LAST YEAR WE DID HAVE AN EXCESS AT THE END OF THE YEAR. SO WE UNDER, UM, UNDER PROJECTED OUR REVENUES A A BIT IN THE PRIOR YEAR. UH, SO THIS, THAT TELLS US THAT WE'RE MORE IN LINE WITH OUR PROJECTION THIS YEAR. UH, TAX ANTICIPATION NOTE WAS NOT ISSUED THIS YEAR. WE WERE ABLE TO INCREASE THE FUND BALANCE AT JUNE 30TH AND, UH, ENOUGH TO SUSTAIN THE 20.1% FUND BALANCE. AND, UH, WE WILL NOT BE REQUIRED, NOT REQUIRE A TAXATION NOTE TO, UH, COVER THE CASH FLOWS IN. UH, RIGHT, RIGHT NOW ACTUALLY IS THE LOWEST POINT IN THE YEAR RIGHT BEFORE, UH, THE BILLINGS COME IN, IN DECEMBER. UH, STATE REVENUE IS, UH, WE COLLECTED ABOUT 16 MILLION OR 12% AT THE END OF THE FIRST QUARTER. LAST YEAR WAS JUST SLIGHTLY LESS AT 11.4%. AND OUR EXPENDITURES IN THE GENERAL FUND ARE, UM, $62 MILLION OR 17% OF THE BUDGET. UH, LAST YEAR WAS SEVEN THIS YEAR, 17.4 LAST YEAR, 17.6. THE REASON 17 VERSUS A 25% IS THAT, UH, SO 25% WOULD SAY WE WE'RE A QUARTERLY WAY THROUGH THE YEAR. WELL, TEACHERS, NEW TEACHERS ARE, ARE ALL TEACHERS BEGIN THEIR FIRST PAYCHECK IN THE MIDDLE OF AUGUST. SO, UH, ACTUALLY I THINK IT WAS MOVED UP A PAYDAY THIS YEAR BECAUSE THEY STARTED TWO WEEKS EARLIER. SO WE, SO ONLY, UH, PAYDAY OR TWO IN AUGUST SHOWS, AND THEN THE TWO OR POTENTIALLY THREE SEPTEMBER WILL SHOW. SO THE OTHERS FOLLOW OUR ACCRUED BACK THE JULY, UH, ANY PAYMENTS IN JULY, WHICH WOULD BE THE SUMMER WHEN, UM, FUTURES HAVE ALREADY EARNED THEIR, UH, ALL OF THEIR WAGES BY THE END OF THE SCHOOL DAY, YOU KNOW, IN JUNE, UH, WE ACCRUE ANYTHING PAID OUT TO THEM IN JULY BACK TO THE PREVIOUS FISCAL YEAR. SO YOU'RE GONNA SEE SMALL NUMBERS RIGHT NOW, UM, AS IN 17%, BUT THERE IS A LARGE, UH, VERY LARGE EXPENDITURE IN JUNE 'CAUSE OF MULTIPLE PAYS, UH, ADDITIONAL THROUGH THE SUMMER MONTHS THERE. UM, SO SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS WE'VE RECEIVED AND, AND EXPENDED ABOUT 20% OF THOSE, UH, PRIOR YEAR EXPENDITURES ARE, OR A LITTLE LESS, UH, FEDERAL EXER EXPENDITURES IN THE FIRST QUARTER, UH, AMOUNTED TO 2.1 MILLION. AND, AND THOSE ARE FULLY EXPENDED. ALL OF THE $74 MILLION THAT WE, UM, WERE ALLOCATED ABOUT THREE YEARS AGO, AND A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE DOLLARS HAVE BEEN SPENT. UM, AND SO WE WILL NOT BE PROVIDING IN THIS, THIS, UH, TODAY'S REPORT, AN ESER VENTURE REPORT. THEY'RE ALL FULLY ATTENDED. SO THOSE, UM, WE ARE FULLY COMPLETE THERE. DEBT SERVICE FUND, UM, UH, WE'RE RIGHT ON TRACK AT $1.8 MILLION LOCAL TAX COLLECTIONS, UM, AND CAPITAL PROJECTS. WE HAVE OUTSTANDING 8% PROJECTS ARE 59.3% COMPLETE. AND 2019 REFERENDUM IS 99.6 PAID IN ENCUMBERED, UM, AS REPORTED LAST NIGHT AT THE CLOCK AND AT THE BOARD MEETING, UM, THIS, UH, THE PREVIOUS EVENING AND 2023 REFERENDUM WE'RE JUST GETTING STARTED, BUT WE'VE ALREADY, UH, SIGNED SOME CONTRACTS AND ENCUMBERED 24% OF THOSE PROJECTS. SO, [00:45:01] UM, THINGS ARE IN VERY GOOD SHAPE AT, AT THIS POINT IN THE YEAR. UH, I SEE NOTHING CONCERNING. AND, UM, WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO, UM, TO SEE WHAT THE NEXT COUPLE OF MONTHS SHOW US IN, IN TAX REVENUE. THE NEXT QUARTER WILL BE VERY, UM, INFORMATIONAL. UH, AS WE BEGIN TO SEE THE TAX REVENUES COMING, I LOOK AT THE BOTTOM LINE AND THE BOTTOM LINE, AS YOU SEE, GO BACK UP, YOU SEE EXPENDITURES. BOTTOM LINE IS WE SPENT IN THE FIRST QUARTER, 12.6% OF, OF OUR BUDGETED EXPENDITURES AND 25% OF THE YEAR HAS GONE BY. SO WE ARE, WE ARE UNDER, UH, WELL, WE SHOULD BE AT, YOU KNOW, IT, THAT'S NORMAL BECAUSE OF THE START OF THE YEAR AND BECAUSE OF STARTING IN AUGUST, SO ON. BUT, SO THIS REALLY SHORT, A LOT OF JULY. UH, SO WHEN I WENT THROUGH THIS ALL, UM, BASICALLY I LOOKED ACROSS THE LINE, AND IF YOU SCROLL DOWN SOME OF THE OTHER PAGES, UH, AND I LOOKED BOTTOM LINE, IN EACH OF THE MAJOR PROGRAM AREAS, YOU'LL SEE 16%, 15%. THE ONLY THINGS I LOOK AT, AND IF YOU GO TO PAGE NINE, UH, INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE, IS THAT 31.5? UH, THAT'S NOT TREMENDOUSLY OVER, BUT IS THAT A FRONT LOADED EXPENDITURE? YES, SIR. YEAH, THOSE ARE THE IB, UM, FEES AND, AND, UM, LICENSES THAT WE HAVE FOR THE IB SCHOOLS, RIGHT? SO THEY ARE PAID UPFRONT. UM, AND LIKELY WE'LL HAVE SOME MORE AT, AT THE MID MIDYEAR POINT, RIGHT? ALL THE OTHER ONES AND OTHER PAGES WE'RE UNDER BUDGET IT, THE NEXT ONE WAS ON PAGE 12, CAREER SPECIALIST SERVICES, 185%. THIS IS A SMALL BUDGET ITEM, BUT 189.9%. WHAT, WHAT'S GOING ON ON THERE? YEAH, SO THIS IS ACTUALLY, UH, WE ARE JUST BEGINNING TO USE THIS CODE. I THINK IT'S BEEN IN PLACE FOR MANY YEARS, BUT, UH, WE ALWAYS KEPT, UH, CODED CAREER SPECIALISTS IN OUR GUIDANCE DEPARTMENT. UM, SO IT LOOKS LIKE WE NEED, UH, JUST, I, I BELIEVE WHAT WE'RE PROBABLY SEEING HERE IS BUDGETING FOR A LOCALITY SUPPLEMENT. MM-HMM. OF $1,500 INCREMENTS. UM, SO WE'LL, WE'LL GO TAKE A LOOK AT, AT THAT SPECIFIC EXPENDITURE TO SEE WHAT'S HITTING THERE. UM, AND WE ARE LOOKING TO BEGIN TO SHIFT THOSE CAREER SPECIALISTS THAT ARE NOT ALREADY SOME, SOME GUIDE, SOME GUIDANCE COUNSELORS HAVE OUR CAREER SPECIALISTS AS WELL. THEY HAVE A CERTIFICATION, BUT THERE ARE SOME THAT DO NOT, ARE NOT GUIDANCE COUNSELORS. SO, UH, I THINK IT'S PROBABLY, UM, IN OUR BEST INTEREST TO SHIFT THOSE STAFFING AWAY FROM THE GUIDANCE DEPARTMENT INTO THIS AREA. SO WE MIGHT JUST NEED A LITTLE CLEAN UP THERE. THIS IS ONLY $12,800. SO I MEAN, IT'S NOT A, NOT A HUGE AMOUNT, BUT IT CATCHES MY ATTENTION WHEN I SAY THAT IT GOES RIGHT IN LINE WITH THE GUIDANCE SERVICES, RIGHT, EXACTLY. IN THAT CATEGORY. SO NEXT ITEM IS OUT IS THAT TECHNOLOGY SERVICES, AND THEY WAS PROCESSING PAGE 17, THEY'RE AT 32.8%. UH, SOFTWARE LICENSES IS THE FIRST THING THAT'S IN MY MIND. , THAT'S, I FIGURED. UM, OKAY. AND GENERAL FUND, THAT WAS ALL GOOD. THAT SERVICE IS IN GOOD SHAPE. UH, I GO BACK TO, UH, PAGE 24, AND I SEEM TO GO BACK TO THIS EVERY QUARTER. THIS IS THE STUDENT ACTIVITY FUND AND HILTON HEAD HIGH SCHOOLS $579,000 IN A STUDENT ACTIVITY FUND LEFT IN HIGH SCHOOL, $498,000. AND THAT'S BEEN THIS WAY FOR SOME TIME. UH, AND TO ME THAT'S OPPORTUNITY. COSTS [00:50:02] ARE BEING, ARE BEING SQUANDERED. THERE ARE THINGS THAT THEY COULD DO, UM, SITTING THERE IN THEIR BUDGET, COLLECTING A LITTLE INTEREST. UH, DOESN'T SEEM TO BE WHAT I WOULD DO IF I WAS A PRINCIPAL OF THAT SCHOOL. I'D FIND OUT WHAT I COULD DO FOR MY STUDENTS AND MAYBE AN ELECTRONIC SCOREBOARD. JUST, JUST, BUT NOW HERE'S THE REAL QUESTION THOUGH. DISTRICT OFFICE 407,017, $117, WHAT DO WE HAVE IN THAT BUDGET FOR THE DISTRICT OFFICE? OKAY, YOU'LL TAKE A LOOK AT THE BEGINNING BALANCE. WE BROUGHT THAT BEGINNING BALANCE DOWN FROM, IT WAS OVER A MILLION LAST YEAR. WE BROUGHT IT DOWN TO 50 $48,000. YEAH. SO ALL THAT'S, THAT BALANCE IS WHAT HAS BEEN COLLECTED JUST THIS YEAR, BASICALLY. OKAY. SO THAT'S GONNA, THAT'S GONNA GRADUAL, YES. YEAR WE'LL USE IT FOR IS THE REPAIRS ON LAPTOPS. UM, AND ALSO IF THERE'S ANY REMAINING FUNDS, WE'LL USE IT FOR THE BAGS, THE PROTECTIVE BAGS, UM, AND THEN IF THERE'S STILL REMAINING FUNDS, WE WOULD HELP, UH, OFFSET THE COST OF ANY RE REFRESH OF ANY NEW DEVICES AS WELL. SO WE BROUGHT THAT DOWN THROUGH THAT, THOSE THREE THINGS LAST YEAR. ANY QUESTIONS ON THE REPORT SO FAR? I'VE GOT SOME QUESTIONS ON THE 8%. UH, ANYTHING FROM MR. CAMPBELL? DO YOU HAVE NO. RIGHT, MR. SMITH? I, I, SO WE'RE ALL ALTERNATE. USE THESE ON THEY WHO, THEY, THE SCHOOL, THE ORIGINAL SCHOOLS. UM, THESE ARE COLLECTED FROM PARENTS AND STUDENTS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SCHOOL YEAR FOR THE TECHNOLOGY USAGE FEES BASED ON THE $20 TECHNOLOGY. UM, WHAT THOSE ARE USED FOR IS FOR THE REPAIRS AND DEVICES THAT ARE COMING IN. UM, SO IF THERE IS A BREAKAGE FOR A DEVICE, THEY USE THESE DOLLARS TO REPAIR SCREENS, REPAIR OR, UH, AND THEN IF, OR IF WE NEED TO REPLACE DEVICES, WE CAN USE IT FOR THAT AS WELL. WE ALSO USE IT FOR THE BAGS THAT THE DEVICES GO IN. UM, AND SO WE ONLY USE IT FOR DEVICES AND THE PROTECTION OF DEVICES. CAN YOU ASK A QUESTION ABOUT THE ACTIVITY FEES? THE DIFFERENT SCHOOLS OR JUST AT THE DISTRICT LEVEL? ACTUALLY, ACTIVITY FEE FEES AT DIFFERENT SCHOOLS, DIFFERENT SCHOOLS AT THE DIFFERENT SCHOOLS. THEY ARE COLLECTED AT THE SCHOOL AND THEY'RE ALL SWEPT UP AND MOVED TO THE DISTRICT OFFICE. HE WANTS TO KNOW ABOUT THEIR SCHOOLS. YES. OH, I'M SORRY. UM, WELL, IT'S PROBABLY A EASIER LIST TO SAY WHAT THEY CANNOT ON. UM, UM, SO STUDENT ACTIVITIES CAN BE USED FOR THE GENERAL FUND, CANNOT BE USED FOR CELEBRATIONS, UM, BALLOONS, FLOWERS, THOSE SORTS OF THINGS FOR, UM, CELEBRATIONS OR ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. BUT THESE FUNDS CAN BE FOR STAFF APPRECIATION. UM, IT COULD BE FOR STUDENT EVENT, THEY COULD BE, UH, FIELD TRIPS. THEY COULD, UM, UH, THEY ARE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND MIDDLE SCHOOL, THERE ARE CLUBS IN THESE ACCOUNTS. SO FOOTBALL MAY HAVE A CLUB, ATHLETIC MAY HAVE. SO YOU HAVE A WHOLE SERIES OF SPORTS THAT ARE INDIVIDUALLY TRACKED. UM, CHEERLEADERS, WHEN THEY DO A FUNDRAISER, THEY HAVE PUT THE MONEY IN THAT ACCOUNT AND THEN THEY CAN SPEND THOSE FUNDS. UM, SO A NUMBER OF ACADEMIC CLUBS, UH, ACADEMIC, UH, ATHLETIC, UH, SPORTS BAND WOULD HAVE AN ACCOUNT. UM, AND SO A PROM OR GRADUATION OR WHATEVER OTHER ACTIVITIES THEY HAVE. SO THEY'RE BROKEN DOWN BETWEEN VERY, IN, IN SMALL CATEGORIES. AND, AND EACH SCHOOL HAS A DISCRETION WITHIN OUR POLICIES TO BE ABLE TO SPEND THOSE DOLLARS ON THOSE. AND, AND, AND, AND FOR INSTANCE, UH, OF, OF, OF THE WHOLE, THAT'S NOT A NUMBER I WANT PARTICULAR SCHOOL, FOR INSTANCE, IF, UH, IF ONE SCHOOL HAD MAYBE, UH, SEVEN, $700, THEN BASICALLY EACH CLUB, WELL, CERTAIN CLUBS COULD HAVE, THEY GOT $7, THEY COULD MAYBE HAVE $500 OR THEY COULD MAYBE HAVE TWO OH DOLLARS. SO IS THAT WHAT I'M UNDERSTANDING? SO EVEN THOUGH THIS IS THE TOTAL AMOUNT, THAT'S, THIS IS THE AMOUNT OF SCHOOL, BUT NOT, NOT THE AMOUNT OF DIFFERENT CLUBS. THAT'S CORRECT. RIGHT, RIGHT, RIGHT, RIGHT. BETA CLUB. RIGHT. UM, SO THOSE ARE BASICALLY [00:55:01] RESTRICTED INTO THEIR OWN CATEGORIES OF WHO'S RAISING THE MONEY AND WHO IT BELONGS. RIGHT? WHO HAS THE DISCRETION TO, TO SPEND A DOLLAR. THERE ARE SOME FUNDS IN THERE THAT DO HAVE SOME DISCRETION AT THE SCHOOL LEVEL. UM, FOR EXAMPLE, IF THEY HAVE A VENDING MACHINE AND STAFF BREAK ROOM AND THEY EARN MONEY FROM THAT, THEY CAN PUT THAT AND HAVE SOME DISCRETION TO MAYBE USE IT FOR STAFF APPRECIATION OR FOR OTHER PURPOSES. UM, THERE MAY BE A RENTAL, UH, RENTAL RENTING THE BUILDING WOULD GO IN THEIR STUDENT ACTIVITY FUNDS AND THEY WOULD HAVE THE DISCRETION OF HOW TO SPEND THOSE FUNDS, UM, THE STAFF AND THE PRINCIPAL LEADERSHIP. SO, UM, SO SOME HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF FLEXIBILITY AND OTHERS DO NOT. AND I, I, I'M NOT GONNA HOLD THIS UP TODAY WITH THIS, BUT THIS IS A VERY INTERESTING TOPIC BECAUSE WE, WE HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT ASK ME THESE QUESTIONS AND I'M KIND, I DON'T KNOW, I DON'T KNOW IF THEY'RE THIS, BUT THEY SAID, WELL, OKAY, WELL, WELL, I'VE SEEN SOMETHING ON THE WEBSITE, SOMETHING TO THE DISTRICT HAS THIS KIND OF MONEY. I'M NOT GONNA LIE, I'VE BEEN LYING. I'VE BEEN SAYING THAT. I DON'T KNOW WHERE YOU SEE THAT. I THINK THAT'S TRUE. BUT THERE, I THINK TO SOME DEGREE THEY MAY, THEY THEY ARE, THEY POSSIBLY COULD BE CORRECT. BUT I, I, I NEED, I JUST REALIZED THAT I NEED TO EDUCATE MYSELF ON THIS AND REALIZE HOW, HOW THAT WORKS. BECAUSE IF THAT'S THE CASE, THAT THEY DO BRING UP SOME GOOD POINTS. SO I, I, I THINK THAT HAVING THIS KIND OF POSSIBLY BREAKDOWN, BUT HAVING, HAVING JUST GOING INTO A UNDERSTANDING THIS A, A LITTLE, AND I APPRECIATE HOW YOU'VE BROKEN DOWN DESCRIBING, BECAUSE YOU'VE DEFINITELY GIVEN ME SOME INSIGHT, AND I'VE DEFINITELY LEARNED SOME STUFF TODAY, BUT I, BUT I JUST KIND LIKE TO UNDERSTAND THIS A A LITTLE BIT MORE AT, AT ANOTHER, AT ANOTHER TIME. IF, IF WE COULD. I'M NOT GONNA HOLD ON THAT TODAY. THANK YOU FOR THAT. MR. DALLAS, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? NO, NO. I JUST WANNA, YEAH, I JUST WANNA FOLLOW UP ON WHAT MR. SMITH SAID, AND, AND THAT THIS IS A VERY HEALTHY PROCESS TO THANK YOU FOR POSING THE QUESTIONS ALONG WITH MR. CARR, MR. SMITH AND OTHERS WHO HAVE, UH, YOU KNOW, TRIED DRILL DEEPER INTO THE NUMBERS, UH, AND IT'S VERY HEALTHY AND IT SORT OF HELPS US IDENTIFY WHERE TO LOOKS. SO, UH, THANK YOU FOR ALL OF THIS AND THANKS FOR EVERYBODY FOR RESPONDING. THANK YOU. DR. DO YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS? UH, NO SPECIFIC COMMENTS, BUT THIS IS HELPFUL AND I THINK IT'S A GOOD, HEALTHY DISCUSSION TO CONTINUE. THANKS. LET'S PUT A CAPITAL PROJECTS. UM, THIS REALLY, UH, MR. DALLAS, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT'S ALWAYS BEEN IN MY, BE IN MY, ON IT ABOUT CLOSING OUT CAPITAL PROJECTS. AND WHEN I LOOK AT GO TO THE FIRST, FIRST ONE ON PAGE, UH, 26, THERE'S JUST LITTLE THINGS ON THIS THAT COULD BE CLOSED OUT, AND IT'S JUST NO EXCUSE. AND, AND, AND I'M GETTING REALLY TIRED OF BRINGING THIS UP, BEING LIKE AT LEAST ONCE A YEAR SAYING, GET THESE PROJECTS DONE. AND I THINK WE JUST DON'T BECOME A, I HATE TO USE THE WORD, BUT A HARD ASS, I'M GONNA USE THE WORD ANYWAY, WITH THESE CONTRACTORS AND THESE SUBS TO GET THE INVOICES IN AND CLOSE THESE THINGS OUT, UH, WHERE A LOT, A LOT BETTER OFF THAN WE USED TO BE. WE USED TO HAVE ABOUT SEVEN, EIGHT YEARS WORTH OF THIS, BUT WE STILL HAVE ITEMS FROM 2021 THAT ARE STILL OPEN. THAT'S UNACCEPTABLE. AND, UM, I KNOW THAT YOU'RE, YOU'RE AWARE OF THIS. THIS REALLY FRUSTRATES ME, AND I SEE THAT IT'S LITTLE THINGS THAT AREN'T BEING DONE BY, AND IT'S NOT OUR FAULT, BUT I THINK IT'S OUR FAULT, AND THAT WE DON'T HAVE A POST A ZERO DEFECTS MENTALITY OR CONTRACT EXECUTION BY OUR CONTRACTORS. SO, UH, YOUR COMMENTS, SIR? UH, I THINK YOU, YOU KNOW, YOU AND I ARE IN TOTAL AGREEMENT ON THAT, UH, IN, IN, IN THE WORLD. UH, AS LEADERS, WE DON'T GET WHAT WE EXPECT. WE GET WHAT WE ACCEPT, AND FOR TOO LONG WE HAVE ACCEPTED EXCUSES FROM OUR CONTRACTOR PARTNERS. UH, AND THERE WERE SOME PRO, UH, PROCESS DEFICIENCIES THAT WERE NOT IN PLACE. UH, AND NOW WHAT'S HAPPENING IS WE'VE, UH, AMENDED THOSE GAPS. NOT ALL OF THEM. WE'RE STILL MOVING FORWARD ON SOME OF THEM. THE TEAM IS AWARE OF THE NO EXCUSE, NO EXPLANATION POLICY, UH, AND WE'RE TRYING TO BE VERY POLITE ABOUT THAT. BUT ULTIMATELY, WE PAY THESE COMPANIES A A LOT OF MONEY. WE PAY THEM ON TIME. UH, WE USE THEM REPEATEDLY. AND THE PRICE [01:00:01] FOR THEM ENJOYING THAT TYPE OF RAPPORT WITH US AND LONG-TERM ENGAGEMENT WITH US, IS THEY HAVE TO DELIVER ON TIME IN OUR TERM AS WE'D LIKE TO SEE, UH, PROCESSES AND PROJECTS EXECUTED WITH FIDELITY AND PRECISION CONSISTENTLY. AND I THINK IT'S MORE OF A MINDSET. YOU'VE BEEN IN SOME OF OUR MEETINGS WHERE THIS HAS BEEN A PASSIONATE TOPIC OF MINE AS WELL. SO I TAKE NO OFFENSE WHATSOEVER ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE HIGHLIGHTING. I SHARE THAT WITH YOU AND, UH, WE'LL CONTINUE MOVING IT FORWARD, UM, WITH, UM, TACT AND DIPLOMACY, BUT WITH FIRMNESS AND, UH, RESOLUTION TO GET IT DONE. YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS? I WILL. I, I, I, I JUST FOR FOR TIME SAKE, I, I, I AGREE WITH BOTH OF YOU. I, UH, ECHO BOTH, BOTH, BOTH OF YOU. UH, I, I, I, I, I ECHO BOTH OF YOUR COMMENTS. I , I, I, I STILL, I TOLD NOT DOING THE JOB. YOU COME AROUND WHERE YOU CAN SEE, BUT YOU DON'T. YEAH, RIGHT. WELL, UM, WE, WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO TIGHTEN THIS UP. ENVISION THIS IS IMPORTANT IS BECAUSE EACH OF THESE PROJECTS HAS A CONTINGENCY FEE IN THEM. AND WHEN THEY'RE NOT CLOSED OUT, WE CAN'T RELEASE THE CONTINGENCY FEE SO THAT WE CAN REDUCE WHAT WE HAVE TO BORROW THE NEXT YEAR. AND THAT'S, UH, AGAIN, I, I HATE TO USE THE WORD AGAIN, OPPORTUNITY COSTS. IT'S AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO LOWER THE AMOUNT WE HAVE TO HAVE TAXPAYERS PAY FOR EVERY YEAR, YEAR, BECAUSE WE GOT THESE FOLKS SITTING ON THESE CONTRACTS AND NOT COMPLETING THEM, NOT GETTING THE PAPERWORK. AND AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED, EVERY CONTRACT WE GIVE THAT ASKS FOR SERVICES RENDERED, WE SHOULD HAVE A DATE THAT SAYS, YOU WILL CLOSE OUT THIS CONTRACT BY THIS DATE. AND IF YOU DON'T, YOU PAY A PENALTY EVERY MONTH UNTIL YOU DO. THAT'S THE ONLY THING THAT WILL GET THEIR ATTENTION, BECAUSE OTHERWISE IT'S, WELL, OKAY, I UNDERSTAND YOU HAVE A PROBLEM. NO, I DON'T UNDERSTAND. YOU HAVE A PROBLEM. GET THOSE THINGS DONE, GET YOUR PAPERWORK IN, AND, AND THEY'RE PLAYING US BECAUSE WHAT THEY, WHAT SOME OF THIS IS, IS THEY DON'T WANT TO BE PAID. THEY DON'T WANT TO HAVE IT CLOSED OUT BECAUSE THEY WANT TO SHIFT THAT REVENUE TO ANOTHER FISCAL YEAR BECAUSE IT'S A TAX ADVANTAGE FOR 'EM. I DON'T CARE ABOUT THEIR TAX ADVANTAGE. I DON'T CARE. AND, AND EVERY TIME I SEE THIS IN THE COURT REPORT, IT JUST CROSS ME. UM, SO WE'LL WORK ON THAT. HEY, UM, CHAD, UM, UH, MR. CHAIR, IF I COULD RESPOND TO THAT. I TOTALLY AGREE WITH YOU. AND SOME OF THE STEPS THAT HAVE BEEN PROACTIVELY TAKEN IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS IS, UM, SOME OF THE PROJECTS WERE NOT CLOSED OUT AND LIQUIDATED DAMAGES NOT INSERTED INTO THE CONTRACT PREVIOUSLY WAS BECAUSE WE DIDN'T PUT DATES IN FOR COMPLETION. UH, IN THE MOST RECENT RQS, YOU'LL SEE THEIR DATES FOR A START, THEIR DATES FOR MIDTERM REVIEWS AND THE DATES FOR COMPLETION. ALSO, IT'S BEEN AN INSERTION OF LIQUIDATED DAMAGES. AND, UM, SO IT, IT BECOMES VERY, EITHER YOU DO OR YOU DON'T. IT'S NOT A DISCUSSION. IT'S NOT AN EXPLANATION. WE DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THAT BECAUSE WITH, LET'S GO BACK TO 2019 REFERENDUM. THAT REFERENDUM HAS $31 MILLION OUTSTANDING IN PAYMENTS THAT WE'VE ALREADY COMMITTED FOR. WE'RE READY TO PAY THEM, BUT THE PROJECTS HAVEN'T BEEN CLOSED OUT. AND SO WE ABSOLUTELY, A MILLION PERCENT ARE IN AGREEMENT WITH YOU, BUT WE ARE MOVING ON THIS VERY AGGRESSIVELY. UH, AND AGAIN, NO EXPLANATIONS, NO EXCUSES ARE WORTHWHILE. UH, PEOPLE JUST GOTTA EXECUTE TO THE LEVEL EXPECTED, I THINK. SO I THINK, I THINK ALSO SOME OF IT IS REALLY, IS UNFORTUNATE THAT IT IS TO THEIR, TO THEIR BENDS INTO OUR DETRIMENT. AND, AND, AND THEN, AND THAT'S THE, THAT'S THE PAIN OF KNOWING AND [01:05:01] CONTINUOUSLY HAVING, HAVING US DRAGGING US ALONG. AND WE HAVE, WE HAVE KIDS THAT, AND, AND STAFF THAT ARE, ARE GETTING SHORTING OF THE STICK CONTINUOUSLY. YEAH. MR. SMITH, IF I CAN RESPOND TO THAT IN LIFE, AGAIN, I GO BACK TO IF YOU'RE LEADING THE ORGANIZATION, YOU GET WHAT YOU ACCEPT. I CANNOT FAULT SOMEONE ELSE FOR TAKING ADVANTAGE OF ME. IT'S UP TO ME TO BEHAVE AND RESPOND IN A WAY THAT THERE'S SOME PAIN FOR THEM TRYING TO DO THAT AND THINKING THEY'RE GONNA BE SUCCESSFUL FOR ME, IN TERMS OF CONTRACTORS, IT MEANS THAT IF THE CONTRACTOR NOW WILL BE TRACKED ON THEIR PERFORMANCE, AND IF THEY CANNOT PERFORM, WE'VE ALREADY HAD DISCUSSIONS WITH THE OPERATIONAL GROUP THAT GOES INTO THE RFQ BID, RFP BID PROCESS, SO THAT, THAT IS NOTED. AND WE SHOULD NOT HAVE ANY CONTRACTOR PARTNER, BUSINESS PARTNER BEING BROUGHT INTO THE BCSD FAMILY IF THEY CANNOT PERFORM TO EXPECTATIONS, BECAUSE THAT DAMAGES OUR EX, OUR IMAGE. AND AS MR. SMITH RELIGIOUSLY NOTES, YOU KNOW, THAT GETS OUT THERE AND PEOPLE THINK WE'RE NOT DOING WHAT WE SHOULD DO. SO TOTALLY AGREE. I THINK THERE'S UNISON IN SAYING THIS IS AN ISSUE THAT HAS TO BE CORRECTED, AND I'M VERY COMFORTABLE IT WILL BE RECORDING STOPPED. UM, ACE FINANCIAL UPDATE. HAVE A, YOU DON'T HAVE A FOLDER. WE DO NOT HAVE A DOCUMENT. UH, I WANTED TO PROVIDE THE MOST CURRENT INFORMATION AVAILABLE. SO, UH, AND, AND AS OF YESTERDAY, WE RECEIVED A FINAL, OR, UH, NOT A FINAL, BUT A DRAFT, A PRELIMINARY DRAFT FROM THE ACE AUDITORS, WHICH IS MANLY GARVIN. UM, NEW, NEW AUDITORS THIS YEAR. THEY'RE DOING A GREAT JOB. UM, LITTLE EXPENSIVE, BUT, UH, WE MAY BE LOOKING AT SOME, UH, OTHER OPPORTUNITIES THERE. SO, UH, HOWEVER, UH, AS OF THIS DATE, THERE ARE NO AUDIT FINDINGS IN THAT REPORT. SO THEY, IT, THIS DOES HAVE A SHEET, A PAGE NEAR THE BACK THAT LISTS ANY, UM, IF THERE ARE ANY DEFICIENCIES OR MAJOR DISCREPANCIES OF ANY KIND, ANY FINDINGS. AND THERE ARE NONE, UH, SATISFACTORY, AND THEY WILL BE ISSUING AN UNMODIFIED OR CLEAN OPINION. UH, WE ARE IN THE STAGES. UH, WE ARE ACTIVELY REVIEWING THE BUFORD COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT AUDITED DRAFT. UH, AS SOON AS WE GET, UH, A LITTLE AHEAD OF SCHEDULE OR AHEAD OF, UM, OURSELVES, GOT A COUPLE THINGS THAT THEY NEED IMMEDIATELY IN ORDER TO ISSUE OUR DRAFT, WE CAN GET ON, UM, AND DO THE FINAL REVIEWS FOR THE ACE DRAFT. KATIE ABAR IS IN CHARGE AND IS DOING A GREAT JOB OF THE ACE AUDIT. SO SHE, AND, AND I SAW THE AUDITORS AT MY, UH, STATE CONFERENCE MEETING LAST WEEK, AND THEY RAVED ABOUT HER. AND, UH, SO I PASSED THOSE, UH, COMPLIMENTS ALONG TO HER. UH, SO EVERYTHING IS IN GOOD SHAPE THERE. UH, WE WILL BE LOOKING TO TRY TO NEGOTIATE TO BRING DOWN THE COST OF NEXT YEAR'S AUDIT OR LOOK AT OTHER ALTERNATIVES. UM, SO I, THERE WILL, IS A BOARD MEETING, ACE BOARD MEETING NEXT WEEK ON WEDNESDAY. I HAVE A CONFLICT AND WILL NOT BE ABLE TO BE THERE. I'M GONNA BE AT THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION THAT DAY. UM, AND SO I HAVE PASSED ALONG THE BUDGET REPORT AND MR. UH, WILL BE JUST PROVIDING THAT INFORMATION. IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS, UM, FEEL FREE TO EMAIL ME. UM, HE, I JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU A BRIEF PREVIEW. UH, THERE IS, UM, ONE PARTICULAR ISSUE THAT HE WILL BE BRINGING UP, AND THAT IS, UM, A LARGE WATER HEATER OR BOILER. SO THERE WAS RECENT, THERE WERE RECENT INSPECTIONS AT ACE, AND AS WE ALL KNOW, WE HAVE MAJOR FACILITIES NEEDS. WELL, THE LATEST ONE IS A WATER HEATER AND BOILER THAT SERVES BOTH THE CULINARY CLASSROOM AND THE KITCHEN. AND THEY DO NOT HAVE HOT WATER. AND THEY HAVE BEEN CITED BY DHC FOR FOUR VIOLATIONS. SO WE GOT ON IT VERY QUICKLY AND HAVE, UM, COMMITTED THEIR GENERAL FUND DOLLARS AS OF NOW, UM, TO SPEND ON THIS PURCHASE, UH, OF A HOT WATER HEATER, WHICH IS $136,000. UM, SO THEY HAVE TO PULL OUT THE OLD ONE, REPLACE THE NEW ONE, AND RECONNECT PROPANE LINES, I BELIEVE, OR SOME KIND OF GAS LINE. UM, SO WHAT, WHEN, WHEN WE PAY FOR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS DAYS, OUR OBLIGATION IS 50 50, BUT WHEN YOU PAY FOR IT WITH GENERAL FUND DOLLARS, IT BECOMES A TWO THIRD, ONE THIRD ALLOCATION BECAUSE WE CONTRIBUTE TWO THIRDS TO THE OPERATIONS. SO THERE WILL BE REQUESTS COMING FORWARD FOR BOTH BUFORD AND JASPER TO PUT IN A 50 50 SPLIT TO FUND THESE WITH CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT DOLLARS, WHICH THE BOARD HAS ALREADY OBLIGATED SOME FUNDS FOR THAT, I BELIEVE, UH, ACE, [01:10:01] UH, JASPER OBLIGATED A MILLION DOLLARS IN THEIR CURRENT YEAR BUDGET. SO WE'RE HOPEFUL THAT WE CAN, UM, USE THAT TO ULTIMATELY PAY FOR THIS 50 50, OTHERWISE WE, IT HAS TO BE DONE. SO, UH, THERE'S NO QUESTION ABOUT IT OR THEY WILL CLOSE DOWN THE, THIS, THOSE AREAS AND THAT IS NOT SOMETHING THAT WE CAN HAVE. SO I JUST WANNA GIVE YOU A PREVIEW OF THAT, UM, SO THAT YOU'LL HAVE AN IDEA OF WHAT HE IS TALKING ABOUT, UM, ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT. BUT, UM, THAT'S JUST, IT'S NOT THE BEGINNING OF OUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS. WE'VE BEEN PIECING THINGS TOGETHER FOR A WHILE NOW, BUT FORTUNATELY JASPER, UH, COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT'S PASSED AND THERE IS MONEY IN THEIR REFERENDUM, I'M TOLD FOR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT TODAY. SO IT JUST MAY TAKE A LITTLE BIT TO FLOW THE CASH TO FLOW AND, AND TO MOVE. AND I HAVE SOME IDEAS ON HOW WE CAN MANAGE THAT FINANCIALLY. WE MIGHT HAVE TO PAY AND HELP, UH, PAYING IN ADVANCE, PAYING THEIR SHARE IN ADVANCE. I KNOW HAVE TO HAVE A MEMORANDUM SO WE GET PAID BACK, BUT WE GOTTA GET THAT, OR PERHAPS WE CAN, AT LEAST THE MILLION THAT THEY HAVE AND THE MILLION WE HAVE TO BEGIN TO GET STARTED AND THAT CAN YEAH. MATCH EQUALLY. UH, MR. CHAIR, CAN I SORT OF JUST WEIGH IN A LITTLE BIT ON THAT ONE AS WELL, MR. CHAIR? GO AHEAD. YEAH, SO, UH, I THINK IT, IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT BY BUFORT COUNTY HAVING DISCUSSIONS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, BASICALLY SETTING ASIDE AND BEING COMMITTED TO MAKING IMPROVEMENTS AS THEY ARE NEEDED, I THINK OUR COLLEAGUES ON THE JASPER BOARD HEARD THAT AND, UH, THEY FELT COMPELLED TO PUSH THE REFERENDUM AGAIN AND ALSO SAY THAT THEY COULD SET ASIDE THAT 1 MILLION. UH, SO AS OPPOSED TO THEM, YOU KNOW, NOT SAYING THAT I HEARD THIS, BUT UH, BUT AS OPPOSED TO THEM POTENTIALLY IN THE PAST HAVING FELT LIKE THEY DIDN'T HAVE THE FUNDING. ONE OF THE THINGS IS JASPER COUNTY AND, AND HARDY IN PARTICULAR IS GOING TO BE, UH, IN THE, UH, TOP 15 LARGEST CITIES IN THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA WITHIN THE NEXT SEVEN TO EIGHT YEARS. AND THEY HAVE A LOT OF GROWTH AND THAT HAS BEEN CONVEYED TO THEM. SO RATHER THAN THINKING ABOUT WHAT THAT PAST HAS LOOKED LIKE, START SORT OF LOOKING FORWARD INTO THE FUTURE. AND SO YOU'RE GONNA HAVE SOME SIGNIFICANT REVENUE STREAMS AND YOUR EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES NEED TO REPRESENT THAT, UH, VERY BRIGHT FUTURE. SO GLAD TO HEAR THAT THE REFERENDUM PASSED AND ALSO THAT THERE'S SUPPORT AND UNDERSTANDING THAT, AS YOU SAID, WE NEED TO MOVE FORWARD WITH REPAIRING THIS. IT'S UNSEEMLY FOR KIDS TO COME IN AND, AND ESSENTIAL MACHINERY, UH, DOESN'T WORK. SO GLAD TO HEAR THAT. AND THANKS TO EVERYBODY. DR. CARR, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING ON THIS? NO. GOOD CONVERSATION TO SORT OUT THAT THERE ARE THINGS THAT ARE IMPACTING NOT JUST BUFORT COUNTY, BUT UH, COUNTY, I'M SURE WE'LL GET IT WORKED OUT, SO EVERYBODY BENEFITS. THANKS. THANK YOU, SIR. OKAY. UH, LAST ITEM IS FUTURE TOPICS. DO YOU HAVE, UH, DO YOU HAVE SOME FUTURE TOPICS THAT YOU NEED TO BRING UP THE FOOD SERVICES? OE 18. 18 O 18. AND, UM, THE STIPEND, A STIPEND PRESENTATION WAS REQUESTED BY MR. NAE. OKAY. NO. MR. CAMPBELL, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING, MR. SMITH, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING? MR. DALLAS, DO YOU HAVE ANY FUTURE TOPICS FOR THE FINANCE TEAM? YES, SIR. UH, NOT FOR THE IMMEDIATE FUTURE, BUT WE TEED UP FROM WORK THAT MISS OTING HAS BEEN DOING IN TERMS OF WATER USAGE, UH, BETTER CALIBRATION ON THAT AND UNDERSTANDING WHERE THE ANOMALIES ARE. UM, THE HVAC, UH, IN PARTICULAR, AND THE HVAC IN PARTICULAR WILL PROBABLY MORE SUITED FOR A WORK SESSION. SO WE CAN START PLANNING HOW WE'RE GOING TO HANDLE THE R 22 AND THE R FOUR 10 A, UH, BEING TAKEN OFF OF THE MARKET SO THAT WE DON'T RUN INTO A CASH CRUNCH IN THE LATER YEARS. WE'VE ALSO ASKED MR. OTTING TO TAKE A, TO STEP BACK AND OVER THE NEXT YEAR REALLY DO A RIGOROUS REVIEW OF OUR ENERGY CONSUMPTION. UH, SO MAYBE THERE'S SOME INNOVATIVE THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING OUT THERE WITH ALL THE TECHNOLOGICAL IMPROVEMENTS. AND WE ALSO HAVE SUGGESTED TO THE OPERATIONS DEPARTMENT THAT THEY TAKE, UM, BOARD MEMBERS ON A TOUR, WHICH HE DID WITH ME. AND I WAS SHOCKED. I, GOD, AND EVERYBODY KNOWS I'M NOT A TECHNOLOGY PERSON, BUT I DO UNDERSTAND THE CONCEPT OF SAVING MONEY AND INCREASING, UH, OUTPUT. UH, THERE'S SOME THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN DONE AND I THINK, UH, KNOWING [01:15:01] THAT THOSE HAVE BEEN DONE AND THAT IS, UH, YOU KNOW, PORTENDS GOOD THINGS FOR WHAT MIGHT BE DISCOVERED. UM, BUT JUST WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THOSE LAST TWO AS SOMETHING INTO THE DISTANT FUTURE. MR. CHAIR FOR CONSIDERATION, JOINT OPERATIONS FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING. I HAVE A DIFFERENT TIME TO DIG INTO THOSE, UH, ISSUES BEFORE WE HAVE A, A, UH, WORKDAY SESSION. WERE YOU, WERE YOU SPEAKING TO ME, MR. CHAIR? YES, SIR. OKAY. COULD YOU REPEAT, I COULDN'T, COULDN'T QUITE HEAR. WOULD YOU CONSIDER A JOINT FINANCE COMMITTEE OPERATIONS COMMITTEE SESSION? OH, ABSOLUTELY. YES. AND WORK ON THOSE ISSUES TO KIND OF HELP SET UP FOR THE WORK SESSION AT A FUTURE? ABSOLUTELY. ABSOLUTELY. LET'S, LET'S, UH, GET OUR HEADS TOGETHER AT DIFFERENT TIME AND TRY TO FIGURE OUT A TIME TO DO THAT. CONSIDER IT DONE, SIR. ALRIGHT. DO YOU HAVE, UH, DO YOU WANNA KNOW WHEN THE DATE? UM, DO YOU HAVE SOMETHING? I WAS, I WAS GONNA SAY, UM, THAT, THAT, UM, LIST THAT WE WERE, THAT WE WERE GOING OVER MAYBE, MAYBE IN THE, IN THE NEXT, UH, BEGINNING OF NEXT YEAR'S TIME, MAYBE THAT I THINK THAT WOULD BE A, A GREAT TOPIC TO, TO, UM, TO, TO, TO INDULGE INTO A BETTER UNDERSTAND THAT AND ALSO THE BOARD MEMBERS SHOULD BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND IT AS WELL. SO, YEAH. WHAT KIND OF DATA WE LOOKING THE JOINT OR FOR NEXT MEETING? NO, LET'S LOOK AT OUR NEXT MEETING AND, AND I'LL, I'LL SIT DOWN WITH, UH, MR. DALLAS. WE'LL, WE'LL TRY TO FIGURE OUT THE TIMING. ALRIGHT. 12TH, DECEMBER 12TH LOOKS GOOD TO ME. IS THAT OKAY? DECEMBER 12TH BOARD, THE BOARD MEETING WAS DECEMBER 10TH. OKAY. I HAVE A CONTINUING EDUCATION ON 11, UM, . UM, SO DECEMBER 5TH WE HAVE A JOINT, UH, SSIC SCHOOL BOARD MEETING. THAT'S AT SIX. AT SIX. UH, THAT'S GONNA BE STOPPED AT THE BROAD. WE DON'T HAVE THE LOCATION YET, BUT I MEAN OUR, THIS MEETING STARTS, UM, YEAH. START AT ONE, ONE O'CLOCK AT ONE. ARE WE, WE'RE GONNA MOVE IT TO ONE O'CLOCK. YEAH. SO ONE, ONE O'CLOCK ON MONDAY THE NINTH? NO, UH, THURSDAY THE FIFTH. TH THURSDAY THE FIFTH. THAT'S RIGHT. THURSDAY THE FIFTH. FINANCE AT, UH, ONE O'CLOCK. ONE O'CLOCK. OKAY. YOU GOT IT. ANYTHING ELSE FOR THE GOOD OF THE ORDER? VERY DONE. LET'S, UH, ADJOURN BY UNANIMOUS CONSENT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANKS EVERYBODY. THANK YOU. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.