5 Things to Know About the HHH School Budget

1. The Half Hollow Hills district administration is taking a for the 2012-13 and 2013-14 school years, which translates to a savings of $1.2 million over the two-year period. Part of the agreement is that no district administrators can be cut during that period.

2. The teachers' union, which agreed to a salary freeze this school year, will have step increases reinstated in the 2012-13 budget.

3. The district will , 18 of whom will be excised due to lower enrollment on the elementary level. An additional 26 positions district-wide are being chopped as well.

4. The preliminary 2012-13 budget is currently set at $221.9 million, and meets the . The proposed figures result in an increase of 2.75 percent from the current year’s spending plan. The difference is the lowest budget-to-budget increase in 15 years, Superintendent Kelly Fallon said during Tuesday's budget forum.

5. When it comes to the preliminary budget, "nothing is final," Board of Education President Jeanine Bottenus said during Tuesday's . The district is still awaiting some figures to come in from the state, which could change the final budget number over the next few months. Typically, budget discussions would be happening only among board members at this point in the process, but the new tax cap prompted administrators to hold the open forums.