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Valley Education Administrators Call For Repeal of Rainy Day Cap

A group of valley school administrators are calling on the state to repeal a law that caps how much they can keep in their rainy day reserves. School leaders say the law would hamper their ability to run their districts or weather another recession.

The law, passed last year, puts tight limits on how much schools can store up if the state puts any money in its rainy day fund.

Susan Markarian, board president of the Pacific Union Elementary School District says the cap it so low that it would prevent them from responding to even minor fluctuations or emergencies…

“The low cap amount doesn’t even allow us to make payroll for more than a few months. Let alone take care of an unplanned expense like plumbing, electrical, or if our well runs dry,” Markarian said.

The law caps reserves to 6-percent district expenditures…the districts say prefer to keep two or three times that amount.

Supporters of the law say in healthy years the state will be able to put money in its reserves, making local rainy day funds redundant.

Jeffrey Hess is a reporter and Morning Edition news host for Valley Public Radio. Jeffrey was born and raised in a small town in rural southeast Ohio. After graduating from Otterbein University in Columbus, Ohio with a communications degree, Jeffrey embarked on a radio career. After brief stops at stations in Ohio and Texas, and not so brief stops in Florida and Mississippi, Jeffrey and his new wife Shivon are happy to be part Valley Public Radio.