District 46 Board Votes Against Registration Fee Increase

The Grayslake District 46 Board voted Wednesday night against raising school registration fees by $10.

"Let's think about the families that have more than one child in the district," said Board Member Michael Carbone. "There's got to be a better solution."

Superintendent Ellen Correll proposed the fee increase as a way to help generate more revenue as the district aims to eliminate a $2.2 million deficit. The board is still weighing a number of budget cuts proposed at its Feb. 20 meeting, including the reduction of 14.5 staff members and a reduction in the amount of physical education time students receive.

Raising the registration fees for all grade levels, including kindergarten, would generate about $30,000 in revenue, Correll said.

"I do think that we need to increase them by $10 for all grades, including kindergarten," said Correll, who noted that District 46 has not increased its registration fees in three years. She said the fees in District 46 are in the middle of the pack in terms of other local school districts' registration fees.

Board Member Kip Evans asked what would happen if the board didn't approve the fee increase.

"That's $30,000 more we'll have to find somewhere else," said Correll.

Carbone suggested possibly trying to save money on legal fees.

"Right there, that's an easy $30,000," said Carbone.

The board also learned Wednesday night that they can legally transfer money from the Operations and Maintenance Fund to the Education Fund.

Evans asked if the board could potentially make a one-time transfer to the Education Fund and forego the fee increases.

Correll said she'd be OK with that. A decision has not yet been made on whether the fund transfer will take place.

The board is expected to discuss potential budget cuts again at its next meeting.

"We're going to have to, at the next meeting, make some decisions," said Correll. She said teachers who are being let go must be notified 45 days before the end of the school year.