The proposed school bus lane at Jack Daley Primary School in Thatcher may have to be put on hold because of a lack of state funding.

The Arizona’s School Facilities Board indicated that Thatcher School District’s building renewal money cannot be used to construct the bus lane that was intended to reduce traffic congestion at Jack Daley, Thatcher School District Superintendent Janice Given said during the Thatcher School Board’s Nov. 13 meeting.

Building renewal money is part of Students First, a school funding program aimed at keeping schools in good physical condition and building new facilities as needed. Public school districts in Arizona are allocated money to maintain their buildings. The School Facilities Board administers students first. The School District may not have enough capital budget money to proceed with the bus lane project.

The School Facilities Board postponed funding new elementary classrooms at Thatcher about six months ago because of state budget constraints. The classrooms were approved; however, the School Facilities Board does not have enough money to pay for them this year.

This does not mean Thatcher will not eventually have new classrooms — it just means the project has been delayed, according to the SFB.

Meanwhile, the School District has experienced a steady influx of new students. According to a report by Given, there were 1,335 students enrolled in Thatcher schools as of Oct. 24 — 26 more students than the 2007-08 school year.

There are 415 students at the Jack Daley Primary School, 304 at Thatcher Elementary School, 188 at Thatcher Middle School and 428 at Thatcher High School, according to Given’s report.

After a peak enrollment of 1,555 students in the 1995-96 school year, enrollment declin-ed each year until the 2005-06 school year, when enrollment began to increase.

Given said planning for future enrollment growth is “in a holding pattern” until School District officials learn how the “slowdown” at the Dos Pobres copper mine will impact the schools.

Several companies that have contracts with the mine have laid off employees in response to lower copper prices and a slow- down of the U.S. economy. The mine is owned and operated by Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc.