Topeka ? Lawrence school officials are taking a wait-and-see attitude about last week’s school finance ruling before they decide whether to abandon plans for a tax increase next year.

“It’s kind of up in the air,” Lawrence school board president Shannon Kimball said Monday. “There are so many unknowns for us that it really depends on the timing of when things happen.”

District officials announced plans in May to cut about $1.2 million in spending next year and to raise the district’s property tax levy by as much as 2 mills to make up for funding cuts the district took when Kansas lawmakers enacted a new school funding system.

On Friday, though, a three-judge district court panel in Shawnee County declared that new funding system unconstitutional. And specifically, it threw out new formulas for distributing state “equalization” aid that subsidizes local districts’ capital outlay and local option budgets, two areas where the Lawrence district took the biggest hits.

Officials said Lawrence lost abut $1.9 million under the new system, including about $1.6 million in aid for its local option budget. Those cuts took effect in the current school year and were to be carried forward for the next two years.

In its ruling Friday, the court not only struck down the new formulas, but also put the old formulas back into place and ordered the state to immediately restore the money that was cut, estimated at about $49.6 million statewide, according to the Kansas State Department of Education.

Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt immediately filed a notice of appeal in the case Friday with the Kansas Supreme Court. And on Monday, he asked the Supreme Court to stay the panel’s order.

“If they stay the district court order and the Supreme Court takes the appeal, it could be another year before we get a decision,” Kimball said. “I think we would have to go forward with the plan in place so we don’t have to cut more money from next year’s budget.”

Kimball said the combination of spending cuts and proposed tax increases for next year add up to more than what was cut under the new funding law. She said that’s because the district was forced to spend down balances in some of its funds this year to absorb the cuts that took effect immediately, and the school board now wants to replenish those balances.

Lawrence Superintendent Rick Doll was not available for comment Monday.

The school board will hold a special organizational meeting at 9 a.m. Wednesday to swear in newly elected board members and choose new board officers. The board’s next regular business meeting will be Monday, July 27.

The board is expected to finalize its budget for the upcoming year sometime in August.