To say area school officials are excited about the infusion of cash from the federal Education Jobs Fund would be an understatement.

Even so, many share concerns about the long-term sustainability of that money.

“We’re cautiously optimistic,” Tom Bruels, superintendent of St. Clair schools, said.

St. Peter Supt. Jeff Olson added: “It’s an opportunity for immediate relief. But we’re being very cautious ... because this is one-time money.”

Several weeks ago, President Barack Obama signed the $26 billion federal legislation aimed at saving 160,000 teaching jobs around the country (which also includes $16 billion in Medicaid assistance to states). The funding was finalized during a special session in August and, with the kind of rapidity not often attached to federal funding measures, could be made available to school districts in the coming weeks.

According to the state department of education — which cautions that funding estimates for individual districts are likely to change as school enrollment figures and billing cycles are finalized — Minnesota’s share amounts to $167 million. Funds will be distributed to schools on a per-pupil basis and, generally speaking, can be spent through September of 2012.

Mankato Area Public Schools could receive up to $1.39 million.

A sampling of other area funding estimates include (figures rounded to the nearest thousand): $371,000 in St. Peter; $380,000 in New Ulm; $400,000 in Waseca; $227,000 in Le Sueur-Henderson; $112,000 in St. Clair; $67,000 in Nicollet; $157,000 in Lake Crystal Wellcome Memorial; and $231,000 in Maple River.

Mankato Supt. Sheri Allen said she shares similar concerns with her area colleagues.

“You always have to look at questions of sustainability,” she said.

Due to so-called “maintenance of effort” requirements, schools cannot un-fund some teaching positions and programs once they have been funded. Under such requirements, spending one-time funds on long-term positions could potentially create havoc in school budgets already strapped by declining enrollment and unreliable funding from the state.

The bill does, however, include some provisions that seem to provide flexibility for districts on how they can spend this latest round of stimulus funds. In addition to re-hiring previously laid off teachers — the primary focus of the bill — it seems school districts can also apply the funds to paying current staff members (excluding district-level employees) and to supporting non-classroom staff such as counselors, athletic coaches, custodians, cafeteria workers and bus drivers.

New Ulm Supt. Harold Remme said his district has already adopted a budget that includes deficit spending in the upcoming year. His understanding of the legislation is that jobs funding could be used to compensate current staff in order to help erase that deficit.

Allen said she has sent e-mails to district principals and administrators, asking for suggestions on how to allocate funds. Already, she said, it appears the district will use part of the money to re-hire almost four full-time staff to ease crowded classrooms.

Allen said the legislation appears to “give us the flexibility to respond wherever we need to across the district.”

Olson said his district has also identified some areas where funds could be spent, including additional special education and classroom staff. But until the state department of education firms up the guidelines for how funds can be spent — and how stringently maintenance of effort will be applied — Olson said it’s best to proceed slowly.

“We’re awaiting the next direction,” he said, adding later: “We’re doing a lot of thinking about the best way to use that funding.”

The federal legislation was paid for by $27.5 billion in offsets, according to a U.S. House Committee on Appropriations supplement to the bill.

Those offsets include: $9.8 billion from closing tax loopholes encouraging corporations to outsource jobs overseas; and $11.9 billion from savings in the Food Stamp program that begin in 2014. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the measure will reduce the federal deficit by $1.4 billion over 10 years.