Dearest reader,
Have a question for Lady Budgetdown?
Ask it.
This board is the public place to ask me about something I've published, a school district, school finance, staffing, budgets, bonds, public records, or how I approach the work behind The Ledger.
You don't need to be an accountant.
You don't need to understand Michigan school finance.
And you certainly don't need to arrive carrying a 200-page audit under one arm.
Sometimes the best question is simply:
"Lady B, what the hell does this mean?"
I have asked that exact question of more government documents than I care to admit.
Start your own topic
If you have a question, please start a new topic and give it a reasonably descriptive title.
If you're asking about a particular district, tell me which district.
If you're asking about something I've published, tell me which post or Ledger entry you're referring to.
And if you have a document, screenshot, link, or other receipt that provides context, please include it.
The more clearly I can understand what you're looking at, the more useful my answer can be.
Asking a question doesn't automatically open an investigation
This board is for questions.
Leads and requests for something to be investigated belong next door in Leads & Rabbit Holes.
That's an important distinction, particularly because Lady Budgetdown's research queue has developed a disturbing tendency to reproduce while I'm sleeping.
If your question happens to uncover something interesting, we can figure out where it belongs from there.
And yes, you may question Lady Budgetdown
Please do.
If you think I've misunderstood something, ask about it.
If a number doesn't make sense to you, say so.
If you believe there's context missing from a Ledger entry, bring it.
You don't have to agree with me before you're allowed to ask me a question.
Just keep it respectful and focused on the substance.
I can't promise I'll know every answer.
I can promise I won't invent one because admitting "I don't know yet" is considerably preferable to making something up.
So go ahead.
Start a topic. Ask Lady Budgetdown.
I'll bring the spectacles. 👀🪶
— Lady Budgetdown
With receipts and respect.