Current Board Policy DCL Fund Balance

                                                                                                     Board Policy Manual
                                                                                             DeKalb County School District

 Board Policy DCL: Fund Balance                                                                             Status: ADOPTED

 Original Adopted Date: 11/16/2011 | Last Revised Date: 12/14/2011 | Last Reviewed Date: 12/14/2011

Fiscal Goals and Objectives
The DeKalb County Board of Education recognizes that the maintenance of a fund balance is essential to the
preservation of the financial integrity of the DeKalb County School District and is fiscally advantageous for both the
District and its taxpayers. This policy establishes goals and provides guidance concerning the desired level of fund
balance maintained by the District to mitigate financial risk that can occur from unforeseen revenue fluctuations,
unanticipated expenditures, and similar circumstances. The District also seeks to maintain the highest possible credit
ratings which are dependent, in part, on the District’s maintenance of an adequate fund balance.
Fund balance is a measurement of available financial resources and is the difference between total assets and total
liabilities in each fund.
Fund balance amounts will be reported in the following categories, listed from most to least restrictive:
  1. Nonspendable fund balance – amounts that are not in a spendable form (e.g., inventory) or are legally or
     contractually required to be maintained intact (e.g., permanent fund principal).
  2. Restricted fund balance – amounts that can be spent only for the specific purposes stipulated by external
     parties (e.g., grants or donations) or imposed by law through either constitutional provision or enabling
     legislation.
  3. Committed fund balance – amounts that can be used only for the specific purposes determined by a formal
     action of the Board (e.g., the Board’s commitment in connection with future construction projects).
     Commitments may be changed or lifted only by the same form of formal action that imposed the constraint
     originally.

  4. Assigned fund balance – amounts intended to be used by the District for specific purposes as determined by
     the Superintendent or a designee.
  5. Unassigned fund balance – includes all amounts not contained in other classifications and is the residual
     classification of the general fund only. Unassigned amounts may be used for any legal purpose.
The District shall strive to achieve and maintain combined unassigned, assigned, and committed fund balances in the
general fund at fiscal year end of between 5% and 7% of budgeted expenditures while complying with O.C.G.A. 20-
2-167(a)5.