Phila. schools ended fiscal year with $88M on hand

The perennially cash-strapped Philadelphia School District ended the 2015 fiscal year with $88 million on hand.

District officials said Thursday that the financial cushion stemmed from new revenue, including money from the city's new cigarette tax.

"This is a positive-ending fund balance," said Uri Monson, the chief financial officer, who joined the district last month. "It is a good thing, but people are not used to hearing that from the district."

The money the district had on June 30, 2015, contrasts with the negative $14.8 million balance the year before.

The figures were contained in the comprehensive financial report, released Thursday. The City Charter requires the district to prepare the report each year. The report is being sent to the mayor, City Council, and bond holders.

Although $88 million might seem a substantial sum, Monson called it a "modest" fund balance, "barely two weeks of operating expenses for the district."

He said the amount was 3 percent of the $2.9 billion in revenue the district received, but financial experts recommend 10 percent to handle contingencies.

"You can see how important fund balances are with the state budget impasse this year," Monson said. "Having the funds in hand allowed us to deal with certain issues around the impasse."

He said the district's improved financial picture reflected an increase in government revenue, including $50 million from the first full year of the $2 tax on every pack of cigarettes sold in Philadelphia. The district also received $120 million as its share from extension of the 2 percent city sales tax.

During the last fiscal year, the district also received an additional $42.8 million in state grants and subsidies, mostly due to reimbursement for higher pension costs.

City Controller Alan Butkovitz, who has criticized previous superintendents, said the report reflected the improved fiscal management of Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. and his staff.

But Butkovitz said the continuing budget stalemate and rising pension and health-care costs pose continuing hazards.

District officials say there are no guarantees schools can stay open through June.

The district has borrowed $525 million and received a partial payment of $770 million from the state, but spokesman Fernando Gallard said that was not enough.

"We're still looking for the full funding to take us to the end of the school year," he said.

martha.woodall@phillynews.com215-854-2789@marwooda