State BOE votes to intervene in Birmingham City School System - WSFA.com: News Weather and Sports for Montgomery, AL.

The state board of education voted unanimously Thursday to intervene with the Birmingham City School System in order to help the school system with its financial crisis. The Birmingham City School System needs $17 million in the bank to operate and they only have $2 million. The state gave Birmingham school leaders a deadline of May 27 to create a plan, which the Birmingham school board failed to do.

Earlier this week, the Birmingham school board approved a modified plan to what the state first recommended. Today the state school board acknowledged that vote, deciding on an intervention rather than a full takeover at this point.

During the intervention, the state will send an on-site team to work with the Birmingham school system as they implement their plan. State superintendent Tommy Bice says the plan has to be in place by June 22 and will be voted on at the next board meeting on June 26.

The decision means the school system has to put names by the positions that will be cut and announce who will lose their jobs.

Bice says if the school board doesn't meet the June 22 deadline, he will have no choice but to take over. If the Birmingham school system fails to implement the plan by June 22, Bice says he may have to push back the start day of school. He's looked at starting school on September 4 instead of August 20.

He added that the state isn't singling out Birmingham City Schools, but it's the only system out of 30 that didn't meet the May 27 deadline for creating a plan.

Also at the meeting, several board members spoke up saying a state intervention or take over isn't necessarily a bad thing. They said it can be very positive depending on how the Birmingham school board and school system work with the state.

RELATED: Gov. Bentley weighs in on Birmingham BOE takeover

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