Radford School Board sends Freedom of Information Act request to City over payments

Radford logoBy WILLIAM PAINE

Patriot Publishing

The Radford School Board sent the City of Radford a Freedom of Information (FOIA) request on Oct. 21, in reference to the city’s Capital Reserve fund and money due for operational costs of the schools.

The request comes as the Radford school system has yet to receive the funding that the city is required to give the school system as part of the state’s minimum required funding formula, which is also referred to as the Local Composite Index (LCI).

“We have not been paid this fiscal year at all,” said Radford school board chairwoman Gloria Boyd. “Not since June 30.”

This was the motivation behind the school system’s FOIA request.

“We wanted to know in the minutes and in the emails about how often we were supposed to get paid and the status of our Capital Reserve fund,” said Boyd. “Last fiscal year the school system gave the city $500,000 out of our Capital Reserves to help the city meet their required match (LCI). That was what the intention was. The FOIA inquired about meetings with the City Manager and Council and with the Financial Office about the security of our Capital Reserve funds. Whether they’re separate from the City Treasury and whether they’re still in place.”

The city asked for an extension to produce the FOIA and though that extension expired on Monday Nov. 10, on Tuesday Nov. 11 the school board received the information requested.

According to Boyd, the FOIA showed how the city’s payments to the Radford school system occurred in a timely fashion until becoming increasingly erratic during the 2024-2025 fiscal year.

“July, August, September, October, were all paid on time,” said Boyd. “The November payment was on Dec. 11 (2024). The December payment was received in March. The January payment was received in April. February and March payments were received in May. April and May payments were received in June and no payments have been received since then.”

The above payments relate to how the school system pays for day-to-day operations.

Boyd also learned that the school system’s Capital Reserve fund is not held in a separate account but is instead part of the city’s general fund. In contrast, Pulaski County Public Schools maintain their own Capital Reserve fund, which is infused with cash on an annual basis by county supervisors.

Per state law, each locality must pay for a specified percentage of their school system’s operational budget depending on a formula based on its property value, adjusted gross income and sales tax. Other factors, such as the number of students enrolled in the system, are also part of the formula.

Using the LCI formula, Pulaski County is required to pay for 45 percent of the annual operational costs for the Pulaski County Public School system. Under the same formula, the City of Radford must pay for 16.5 percent of the Radford School System’s operational costs.

“I’m not exaggerating to say that we are at the very bottom of the state,” said Boyd of Radford’s LCI. “We got a lot of money from the state because we have the lowest LCI, and that is how we have managed to survive this long with no payment. Plus, we have some very financially adept, responsible people handling our financials, so that we were able to get this far without the city’s funds. Dr. [Adam] Joyce (School Superintendent) and our financial clerk Carry Long are just wizards. They are masters in the budget department, but no school division expects this to happen. It’s very unusual, bordering on unheard of.”

Is Radford’s school system feeling the effects of not receiving payment from the city?

“We are definitely solid right now but no school division can stay solid when they have not had a payment from the city since June,” Boyd responded.

The school board and city officials meet on a regular basis but little progress has been made so far, this fiscal year.

“I think we’re all very frustrated,” said Boyd. “We’ve had meetings with the city manager and the mayor that are really not productive at all. We did not come away with any guarantees for a date of payment of any amount.”

Boyd emphasized that she bears no ill will towards city officials but filed the FOIA out of concern for the school system.

“You know I’m a cradle Bobcat, so this really hurts my heart to be in this position,” said Boyd. “I just want to be transparent. I want the citizens to know how things are. It’s real. We are not able to make payroll looking into December.”