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per pupil. He said if the County continues what they are doing right now, based on the <br />averages in the past, the funding would more than double over the next 10 years. <br />John Link then explained the models that are being used by other counties for school <br />funding. He explained the model that Orange County is using, which is choosing a percent of <br />the general fund. He pointed out that this is not a policy. <br />Donna Dean said that the Budget staff has tried to ensure that the per pupil amount would <br />not fall below the current per pupil amount of $3,160. <br />Chair Gordon said the Board was on the right track in that they were doing what the <br />citizens want them to do. She said there needs to be a more comprehensive approach. Some <br />of the expenses are increasing because of growth that does not pay for itself. There will be <br />more expenses as Orange County continues to grow. She said the County staff needs to get <br />some idea of the pattern of growth in the schools. She is supportive of trying to come up with <br />finances, but she thinks the school boards and County staff need to work together in a larger <br />context. <br />Commissioner Jacobs asked if the impact fees are included in the total funding and he <br />was told no. He said that it would seem easier to develop an adequate public facilities <br />ordinance so the available funds could be projected more specifically. Regarding the district <br />tax, he thinks it should be more comprehensive so it is not just increased every time school <br />expenses are not met. <br />Commissioner Halkiotis said that one of the challenges the Board will face in the next few <br />months is to begin discussions on what an adequate public facilities ordinance would look like. <br />He thinks this should be discussed in the near future. <br />The Board of County Commissioners decided that a message needs to be sent that the <br />Board will control the budget and allocate funds according to a method or formula, and the <br />school boards can decide their policy within the parameters. <br />Planning Director Craig Benedict made reference to the adequate public facilities <br />ordinance and said that there is a major linkage between setting a capital investment for the <br />future and what is spent in the budget each year. The decision that comes from the Board will <br />establish the capital side of the expenditure. Once the set of standards is developed, it <br />establishes certain classroom sizes. He said the impact of these decisions is very closely tied <br />into an adequate public facilities ordinance. <br />Chair Gordon pointed out that the class sizes in Orange County are smaller than the class <br />sizes in Chapel Hill/Carrboro. <br />Commissioner Carey said he agrees with Craig Benedict, but the problem is the school <br />boards can make a decision that sets the number of students in each class. He pointed out that <br />the County does not control all of the approvals for subdivisions and number of units that are <br />constructed. <br />Commissioner Brown said that it should be shown that Chapel Hill/Carrboro has a higher <br />per pupil allocation than Orange County. She asked for a list of each school, the capacity of <br />each school, etc. She thinks the school board needs to have a budget parameter. <br />John Link said that they would take the comments tonight and add in the impact of the <br />adequate public facilities ordinance. <br />Commissioner Brown asked Donna Dean to put each of the models on a graph and <br />separate Orange County and Chapel Hill/Carrboro according to their per pupil allocation. <br />Commissioner Carey said he would like to know the total number of students in each <br />school system. He said that there are some years that there have been state policy changes <br />that caused expenditures, and it would be helpful to know which years this happened. He made <br />reference to a meeting at the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners convention <br />this month. At this meeting there was a discussion about getting money to implement the new <br />policy on testing children to make sure they move forward, and developing plans for those who <br />did not move forward. He asked if this money was received. <br />Chair Gordon mentioned the district tax and the difference in per pupil allocations in <br />Orange County and Chapel Hill/Carrboro. She said one of the problems the Board found in <br />achieving equity a few years ago was in the method of increasing the general fund and