School could face SOD

Another year of deficit spending has taken another chunk of Ely school reserves, and has raised the specter that the local district could spiral into statutory operating debt (SOD).

Those were the grave warnings Monday, when school board members reviewed an audit report that showed a budget lined in red ink for a fifth straight year.

“You’ve had significant decreases year-over-year and you don’t want that to continue,” said Mary Reedy of Brainerd firm CliftonLarsonAllen, which conducted an audit of the district’s books for the fiscal year that ended in June.