The Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education sent a letter to state legislators this week asking for $50 million to help reconcile its deficit.
Officials said “draconian measures” would need to be taken without financial aid from the state. But, according to Rep. Donny Lambeth, that help isn’t coming.
In an email shared with WFDD, Lambeth told district officials the time to make a request for help was back in April, and that all deadlines for bill filings have passed for the session.
"So while this is not the news you may have preferred, it is the reality of how the General Assembly is organized and the schedules we work under," Lambeth said in the email. "Good luck in cleaning up the financial disaster. I would buckle up and dig deep to avoid further financial issues."
The district has another request out to county commissioners for $8.5 million. That will be voted on in a couple of weeks.
Officials say major cuts to staff and programming will be necessary to recover without outside help.