BUDGET

The Unalaska City School district was in compliance with financial regulations, according to findings of an audit looking back at fiscal year 2022. Altman, Rogers & Co. — an Alaska-based accounting and auditing firm — performed the yearly inspection, which is meant to ensure the district is following protocol and properly handling public funds. The firm reported a total deficit of about $140,000 for fiscal year 2022, which is slim compared to this year’s projected deficit of more than half-a-million dollars.

Like many school districts across Alaska, spikes in energy costs have Unalaska City schools looking at a major budget deficit. In combination with flatlined state funding, enrollment drops and increased teacher salaries, the island’s deficit is predicted to take the shape of around a-half-million dollars. Superintendent Jim Wilson presented a budget update to the Unalaska school board on Oct. 19 that includes a $535,000 anticipated deficit. This is the biggest deficit he’s seen in his 10 years as the high school principal, and likely one of the largest deficits the district has ever seen, he said.

While Alaska’s lawmakers consider increasing public school funding, the Unalaska City School District prepares for a significant decrease in revenue due to a drop in enrollment. And with that, the district is looking to the city for about $5 million to cover its budget for fiscal year 2023. At a City Council meeting Tuesday, Superintendent Robbie Swint Jr. presented the Unalaska City School District’s proposed budget, which is based on an estimated enrollment of 345 students.

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