While many cities and departments have learned what exactly to expect from the state after the end of the legislative session, school districts are still in the first stages of finding out what their budgets will look like.

Overall, Albert Lea district officials said they aren’t surprised with the numbers they have calculated from state formulas.

&uot;Actually, we came extremely close to what our projections have been showing,&uot; said Mark Stotts, the director of finances and operations for the district. &uot;Compared to last year’s it’s actually about $1.3 million higher, but remember, the referendum money is also in there.&uot;

The district passed a referendum last year that provides approximatley $1.1 million per year in extra property-tax revenue.

The district increased its budget from $22.3 million to

$22.6 million, just $11,000 under what they’d expected.

&uot;That’s good news,&uot; Stotts said.

The district would actually be getting more if their student numbers had stayed the same. Instead they will be losing around 112 students, which accounts for around $672,000 in lost revenue.

One change that Stotts noted is that the state increased their percentage of equalization aid for referenda, meaning that property taxes increases for the referendum might be lower than first expected.

Overall, Stotts said he was content with the results.

&uot;I thought, personally, at the beginning of this session, that schools would get hit harder than they did,&uot; he said. &uot;Would we have liked to see a larger increase? Certainly. Are we unhappy with what we have? No.&uot;

Superintendent Dave Prescott said the district will have to begin working on the new budget in order to have a preliminary one ready for the next school board meeting June 19.