The Wright City R-II School District is continuing to examine possible cuts to its budget should state funding be reduced. The district will seek public input on proposed cuts Tuesday, Feb. 28, at a town hall meeting. The gathering will begin at 5:30 p.m. at Wright City West Elementary. "We want to talk briefly about what we think our reality is for cuts and discuss revenue projections," said Superintendent Dr. Chris Gaines. A list of 203 items to potentially cut based on suggestions from parents and staff has been formed by district officials. The list is available on the district's website. "We've taken ideas from anybody that had one and put it on the list," said Gaines. "We did a big analysis of each item to eliminate the duplicates and we've included district positions, transportation changes, school programs and athletics." The superintendent said both parents and staff will be asked three questions to gain input on areas that could be cut. Parents will be surveyed during the meeting while staff will be surveyed the week before the meeting. The short survey will ask if money has to be cut, what should be eliminated, what items should not be considered for possible reduction and what items not on the list should be included? After obtaining all survey responses, district officials will then compile input from staff and parents in the coming weeks to develop three updated lists regarding potential cuts. Gaines said the lists will include potential cuts, items the district cannot afford to cut and district recommendations on what could be cut. "What we saw last time we did a survey was that there were some things that rose to the top that people thought we could cut so we'll see if that happens again," he said. Currently, the district receives approximately $4.8 million from the state funding formula and classroom trust fund, a portion of which is money gained from gambling throughout the state. "There could be about a $1.1 million swing," Gaines said. "That $4.8 million is either going to go up or down." The district could lose approximately $900,000 in a "worst-case scenario." Gaines said should the district lose that amount, it would be forced to cut about half of that total and absorb the rest. "It would be incredibly difficult to cut nearly $1 million," he said. "We could cut half and go into the money that we have set aside in the bank and just reduce what we have in the bank by the amount we need to." The district could receive an additional $200,000 if the formula is funded to the level promised, but officials said they want to prepare for the worst. He emphasized that there is still much to be determined from the current state legislative session. "We're not going to cut anything until we absolutely have to, but we'll be ready if we have to," Gaines said. "Every week that goes by, we know a little bit more, but the session won't be over until the middle of May so I don't want to assume that we'll have to cut anything, but we'll be prepared. It may not be necessary." Gaines said depending on input from parents and staff and new information from the current legislative session, another town hall meeting could be scheduled in the future.