Birmingham, Ala (WIAT) The Jefferson County Board of Education began discussions on a proposed budget for the 2012 fiscal year.

Superintendent, Dr. Phil Hammonds says the district has done a good job in watching its spending, which should help tremendously in the future.

"I think we are fortunate that we have built up a reserve of over 80 million dollars, uh and we have tapped into that along with making some cuts in staffing and services so the challenging is how do we continue to offer a level of services to our students that they need and deserve and that our parents expect while remaining financially healthy."

The next budget hearing is scheduled for September 13th at 2 p.m.