Sycamore School District 427 Board considers borrowing additional $2.5 million

SYCAMORE – The Sycamore School District 427 Board will discuss borrowing up to $7.5 million, ahead of receiving expected tax money, at its regular meeting Tuesday night.

If the board approves borrowing the money, this will be the third year in a row it has discussed borrowing millions in tax anticipation warrants. The district borrowed about $5 million in 2016 and $4 million in 2017.

“Once you’re in a cycle of borrowing like this, it’s hard to get out of the cycle,” District 427 chief financial officer Nicole Stuckert previously said.

During a meeting in January, the board tossed around a $5 million figure, but that amount has since increased, according to the agenda. Tax anticipation warrants are funds school districts can borrow while waiting to receive levied tax money, according to documents from the Illinois State Board of Education.

Board members will discuss the resolution to help the district make ends meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the Administration Building, 245 W. Exchange St., Sycamore. Documents on the district's website show it anticipates entering the red sometime in March and being in similar situations through 2020.

Stuckert previously said state funding payments have been sporadic and incomplete, and the largest amounts of local funds from property taxes come twice a year, in June and September. Local funds always arrive on time, Stuckert said.

The tax warrants provide extra money when cash flow into the district is lowest, allowing it to operate for the remainder of the school year.

The board also will take a second look at its agreement with the Sycamore Park District to construct a path past the middle school that will connect to the larger trail network, and ideally provide students with a safer path to and from school. Board President Jim Dombek mentioned that some formatting problems would need to be corrected before the board could approve the agreement at its Feb. 13 meeting.

“Everything else looked pretty close to what we discussed and agreed to,” Dombek said.