GASTON COUNTY, N.C. — Gaston County Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to give $10 million to Gaston County Schools, closing a budget shortfall that would have triggered 100 layoffs this week and potentially 300 more later.
Superintendent Morgen Houchard told commissioners the deficit surfaced mid‑year after he and the school board received incorrect budget information from a longtime employee.
Commissioners said they weren’t responsible for the shortfall but felt a moral obligation to prevent mass layoffs in the county’s largest workforce — roughly 3,900 employees.
The money will come from the county’s fund balance, and leaders expect the district to eventually repay it, according to the Charlotte Observer.
Houchard said the deficit stemmed from a steep drop in state Low Wealth Supplemental Funds, inflation, the end of federal COVID relief money, and staffing levels that no longer matched available resources.
The district had already eliminated positions, frozen hiring, and imposed a spending freeze, but still couldn’t finish the year without county help.
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