Bruce Johnson makes budgets every year.

Going on 20 years in fact during stints as superintendent at Osborn and now Stanberry for the past 12-plus years. One line on his budget goes up every year, whether its the addition of sports, the prevalence of nonconference travels or rising gas prices.

Transportation costs continue to increase, and with gas prices constantly in flux, dire decisions on the future of high school athletics could be made in the not-so-distant future.

“I think everybody is in the same boat,” Johnson said. “They’re worried about it, and they hope it turns around. I never figured transportation would ever interrupt activities or athletics.”

In separate interviews, seven local high school administrators agreed on certain trends resulting from higher gas prices:

Transportation costs are becoming more of an issue

Concessions are being made in the budget each year to alleviate those concerns

Continued inflation of gasoline prices could begin to affect high school athletics even deeper

All hope to avoid cutting athletic or activity programs because of cost

None specifically mentioned the elimination of sports as impending, but none were willing to rule out the possibility.

“(Transportation) has to come first because you have to do it, so other things kind of get pushed back,” Johnson said. “I’m not saying it’s life or death decisions. It’s just more for transportation.”

Added Benton activities director Mike Ziesel: “Are we feeling it right now? Maybe not, but it just grows and grows and grows. So where are we finding the money to supplement that?”

Currently, schools are using a number of tactics to add to transportation’s budget line, and many involve cutting from other areas.

With the average price of diesel fuel up nearly 300 percent in the past decade, schools clearly have to spend more loading kids on buses to attend sporting events. Many area schools have to find ways to transport players for freshman, junior varsity and varsity players.

“I think (the general public) would be floored to know the cost of buses and the amount of buses that go out to transport students,” Bishop LeBlond activities director Greg Kastner said. “I’m sure they don’t. They probably haven’t put a pen to a piece of paper and really looked at it.”

But school administrators are looking at it.

Schools are finding ways to share transportation costs, or in other instances, change schedules to find shorter road trips.

South Nodaway principal and activities director Kyle Collins said his school has tried to start partnering with neighboring schools on field trips to split the costs. Those chances are few and far between in athletics due to teams participating at separate sites and the number of kids involved.

But cutting costs in other parts of transportation do help alleviate the strain of added costs in athletics.

Kastner noted LeBlond’s policy of putting freshman, junior varsity and varsity teams on the same bus to make one trip when applicable.

“We’re looking at ways to be smarter when we travel,” Collins said.

Many rural schools also try to play varsity girls and boys basketball games on the same evening, especially at smaller schools which don’t field sub-varsity programs.

Scheduling also becomes a factor with many schools forced to cancel some games in favor of a more local opponent.

Other concerns include out-of-town tournaments, especially in basketball. Benton and Lafayette currently play basketball tournaments in Rolla and Jefferson City, but those trips could be put in jeopardy.

“It’s just like you do at home with your own budget,” Collins said. “We all feel it at the gas pump. It really affects everything you do.”

Travel costs also affect the officials, judges and referees, a factor causing some fans to feel the pinch at the gate.

As the personal travel expenses go up for those officials, their fee per game has also gone up, doubling in the past decade according to one local administrator. Winston activities director Eric Lewis said his district recently increased ticket prices by $1, and another $1 increase could be on the way.

“We don’t want to do that,” Lewis said. “We take pride in keeping our gates low, but the cost of officiating is forcing us to have to look at increasing prices.”

The general public will also begin to play more of a part in the coming years.

Administrators said booster clubs and donations often help to overcome the costs of uniforms, scoreboards, etc. Tax propositions could also see an increase if schools’ budgets begin to overwhelm.

Tax levies help public schools, but private schools will continue to rely on cutting from other areas.

“We don’t get tax dollars,” Kastner said. “So we have to try and tighten the belt and cut where we can without any student suffering.”

Doug Flowers, who handles athletics for the St. Joseph School District, hopes parents and voters see the advantages of extra-curricular activities. Although sports and activites are just a small part of budget crunches, they need people to remember what they do for children.

“We are a believer that activities keep kids in school,” Flowers said, “and motivate them to do better in school, and activities give them the relationships and backgrounds with people that open doors down the road. And we will do all in our power to continue to provide those activities for our students to benefit.”

Assistant sports editor Ross Martin can be reached at rossmartin@npgco.com