Development of the District Budget

A school district budget is prepared annually and approved by the Board of Trustees after holding a public hearing, usually in June. Many patrons have expressed surprise that we do not know how much money we will be receiving from the state yet. In prior years, we have known our state funding by mid-March. This year it will likely be in April because of the federal stimulus.

The primary factor which affects our funding is student attendance. Since we can only estimate what our enrollment and attendance might be, based on historical trends, we really do not know how much state funding we will receive until February 15 of the following year. That is the date that the Department of Education fixes the support units for staffing purposes which drives the majority of our funds. In other words, we will know on February 15, 2010 how accurately we budgeted in the spring of 2009. In fact, the February 15 numbers only account for about 85% of our state funding. The remaining 15% we will not know for sure until June 2010; the end of our fiscal year.

Our enrollment has been decreasing which makes budgeting even more challenging. This fiscal year we have been “held harmless” by a law which says a school district cannot receive less that 99% of the funds they received the prior year. This law helps a district to adapt to decreasing enrollment. Certified professional employees are under contracts which must be signed in the prior spring. This law helps districts through the current year and allows them to adjust their staffing and budget to reflect the enrollment the following year.

85% of a school district’s expenses are related to salary and benefits. We are in the “people” business. The remaining 15% includes supplies, textbooks, maintenance, custodial, transportation, purchase services, equipment, utilities, etc. It is very difficult to significantly reduce a school district budget without impacting personnel.

While all of the above is the reality, the budget document is really a blueprint for the quality of educational programming a district intends to provide for its clients. Without a doubt, the budget drives the education program. If the patrons believe that the funding provided by the state is inadequate to support the quality education program they desire, a district’s only alternative is to request additional local funding through a supplemental levy election.

One of the primary responsibilities of the elected trustees is to shape and approve the budget. Last year, the Board made some program cuts to reflect decreasing enrollment and decreasing state funding. This is never an easy process because there will always be support in some corner for every program the District provides. This year, the Board began the process early. The Board solicited input from the instructional staff and the extra-curricular staff in two public meetings this month. On March 23, the Board will be listening to patron input. Patrons can find cut “ideas” on the web site. Please understand these are ideas for discussion and no specific cuts have been identified yet.