The Troy City Schools Board of Education passed its FY2013 budget Thursday morning, approving a plan that will leave the district with slightly more than three months’ operating reserves at the end of the year.

The budget, reviewed twice during public hearings, includes $23.1 million in planned expenditures (including $3.5 million in construction projects) and $17.7 estimated revenues. The difference – some $5.3 million – will come from bond proceeds ($3.5 million) and the general fund operating reserve.

Mickey Daughtry, CFO of the district, said the budget includes an estimated 3 percent growth in sales tax revenues over FY 2012; a 5 percent decline in state funding; and a 9 percent decline in federal funding.

Personnel costs for the entire district – including administration, faculty, staff and support personnel salaries and benefits – is $15.2 million or 78 percent of total expenditures.

Dr. Judson Edwards, president of the school board, said he reflected on the changes to the system’s budgets during the past five years as he reviewed this budget.

“I was thinking back over the history of this and we’ve faced a combination of things: the economy, loss of enrollment, state proration … but we’ve been blessed to have had the management in the past to allow us to draw from the reserves.”

Edwards said the district officials worked to prepare a conservative budget. “When I look at the composition of the budget, I don’t think we’re spending money just to spend money,” he said. “When you look at our discretionary spending, our non-human resource spending, it’s conservative.”

Superintendent Lee Hicks said he was pleased with the budget.

“We’ve been working toward this,” he said. “We’ve worked some local units off, but there are still some decisions to be made in the future. “