Public school officials say they’re going to have to find even more creative ways to save money after learning that their districts will have to absorb a 3 percent cut in state funding.

“There are going to be some dark days ahead,” said Greg Carson, spokesman for Orangeburg Consolidated School District 5.

Due to the cut, OCSD 5 may have to eliminate some of its after-school programs and adjust its summer school offerings. Carson said the cuts will not impact the classroom during the regular school year.

On Tuesday, the State Budget and Control Board voted 3-2 to cut funding for all state agencies by 3 percent. The move will reduce public education funding by more than $73 million this year, with nearly all of it absorbed by school districts.

Rural districts like Bamberg School District 1 could face the most severe consequences of the 3 percent cut. Bamberg 1 stands to lose $100,000 from its $15 million budget.

The district already made the controversial decision earlier this year to close Ehrhardt Elementary School for financial reasons, citing low enrollment.

Bamberg 1 Superintendent Phyllis Schwarting said some teacher positions have already been eliminated to balance the budget, causing class sizes to balloon. And she has issued a memo to freeze any unnecessary spending.

If there are more cuts, Schwarting said the district might have to cut more positions.

“We have no definitive answer on how we’re going to solve this problem. Knowing this is the tip of the iceberg doesn’t make it a whole lot better,” she said.

Districts will likely see more cuts soon in Education Improvement Act funding, which is based largely on sales tax revenue and helps finance tutoring and teacher salaries, among other items.

This past session, the legislature allocated $45 million less than it did last year for EIA funding due to sliding revenues.

The State Department of Education is predicting an additional shortfall of more than $10 million in EIA funding before the year is over, spokesman Jim Foster said.

OCSD 4 officials anticipated a budget shortfall and attempted to counteract it by reducing the work week to three days in July.

“We’re going to be OK since we’ve made the appropriate adjustments,” said Superintendent Dr. Darrell Johnson, whose district will lose an estimated $320,000 from the cuts. He noted that 83 percent of the district’s budget is spent on personnel.

Johnson said if any more cuts come, the district might look at cutting “nonessential personnel” to reduce any impact on instruction. However, he said that would be hard to do since “every person in the district impacts the classroom.”

Other options could include borrowing money or withdrawing from the district’s $3.1 million reserve fund, Johnson said.

Schwarting said her district doesn’t have that option, since its reserve fund is less than $500,000.

Meanwhile, OCSD 5 projects the cut will result in a loss of between $500,000 and $600,000 in state funds.

With budget constraints, OCSD 5 has not replaced employees that have recently resigned or retired. Like Bamberg 1, the district is expecting larger class sizes this year.

Carson said the district is looking at ways to combat the latest budget setback and has placed a moratorium on all travel unless it is absolutely necessary.

“Everyone is going to have to get imaginative in finding ways to do a whole lot more with a lot less,” he said.

The decision to make a 3 percent across-the-board cut for all state agencies was even worse than the 2 percent originally predicted by educators.

However, Foster said there is a silver lining in knowing about the cuts now instead of later.

“If there is a good part to this, at least the districts can start absorbing the cuts earlier in the year. It’s a lot easier with 11 months to go (in the fiscal year),” Foster said.

The decision marks the seventh mid-year cut to public education since 2001.

T&D Staff Writer Lee Tant can be reached by e-mail at ltant@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-534-1060. Discuss this and other stories at TheTandD.com.

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