The District 55 School Board adopted a budget for next school year, but more budget cuts could be in store for the 2010-11 fiscal year if state revenue forecasts are off or tax proposals fail.
On June 2, the state forecasted enough funding for a $6 billion K-12 budget, Business Manager Kevin Strong told the board Monday night. The district adopted a budget based on a state funding level of $5.9 billion.
If revenues come in high enough to fund education at $6 billion, the district could see $200,000 more in revenue this year, he said. If it comes in lower, it represents a little less than $200,000 per $100 million per year in statewide K-12 funding.
The state will probably provide funding for 2009-10 at the $6 billion level, Strong said. Revenue deficiencies for the biennium will not appear until 2010-11 as a result, and the district will have to deal with both years in the second year of the biennium, a swing of up to $1.6 million at the local level if statewide funding ends up at $5.6 billion, a worst-case scenario that district officials have been considering.
The state’s forecasts depend on $800 million in new taxes, Supt. Larry Horton said; but if those taxes fail to win approval, it won’t show up immediately.
“You’ll be short not this coming school year but the year after,” Horton said.
The district has already prepared a plan for cuts to cope with a statewide K-12 funding level of $5.8 billion.
Administrators and the district’s certified and classified unions have been meeting recently to figure out ways to cut up to $800,000 over the next two school years if state revenue falls short, Horton said. They have agreed to cut two school days at a statewide funding level of $5.7 billion and five at $5.6 billion.
That cuts $60,000 per day in expenses, for a savings of up to $300,000, leaving the district to find another $100,000 in cuts elsewhere in a single year.
Exactly which days would be cut remains under discussion, Horton said. “We’ll still have to come up with an MOU (memorandum of understanding) with both unions if we have to implement it, with the hope we don’t have to implement it.”
Failure to plan for the possibility would not be responsible stewardship of public resources, Horton said.
The classified union prefers to spread out cut days throughout the year to impact paychecks the least, said Susan Kinney,
president of the classified association.
Certified employees are concerned that the district include a trigger to restore cut school days if the budget allows for it, deciding when the district’s cash carryover is enough and how much is too much, from the perspective of union members, said Dan Swanson, president of the Sweet Home Education Association.
The board approved the budget 6-1, with Chanz Keeney voting no over the removal of a provision to eliminate the Transportation Enterprise Fund from the budget. Voting to approve the budget were Jason Redick, John Fassler, Leena Neuschwander, Diane Gerson, Dale Keene and Chairman Mike Reynolds. David VanDerlip was absent.
Among changes to the budget from its approval by the Budget Committee, the district restored some days for the pool supervisor, partially with $12,000 in funds donated through the city of Sweet Home’s water billing and directly from the city’s general fund. Overall, the pool supervisor will work 215 days instead of 242.
Junior high licensed labor expenses have been reduced by an estimated $16,00 following the retirement of a teacher, who likely will be replaced by a teacher lower on the salary schedule.
A carryover of $13,000 will be used at the high school to pay for a .2 full-time equivalent desktop technician from the Linn-Benton-Lincoln Education Service District. This year, the school is paying for .6 FTE.
The approved budgeted figure for interest income was reduced by $35,000 to reflect lower interest rates.
The total budget is $30.5 million, with $19.15 million in the general fund; $4.55 million in special revenue funds; and $5.25 million in debt service.
In other business, the board:
The board ratified a three-year contract with People Involved in Education to operate Sweet Home Charter School. The PIE Board was scheduled to decide Tuesday night whether to ratify the contract.
The new contract will cap enrollment at 162 students next school year; 198 for 2010-11; and 234 in 2011-12. The Charter School may offer classes through the sixth grade next year. In 2010-11, the Charter School can add a seventh-grade class; and in 2011-12, it can add an eighth-grade class.
The Charter School includes kindergarten through fifth grade this year and has 119 enrolled, well under its cap of 162 students.
The board approved plans to eliminate pickups in certain areas of the district to comply with state rules. Elementary students within a mile of their schools do not qualify for the transportation unless they have to walk along a dangerous street.
The changes will affect an estimated 128 students.
For Hawthorne, affected services areas include Long Street to 18th Avenue on Route 1 and the Mountain View area on Route 19, affecting 38 students.
At Oak Heights, service will be cut to the Elm Street area, the area around 12th Avenue at the HOPE Center, Second through Fourth Avenue north of Highway 228 and the Nandina area in Strawberry Heights, affecting 90 students.
Foster students from 48th Loop and Nandina Street will gather at a collection point on 47th, Transportation Supt. L.D. Ellison said. They are within a mile of the school, but walking across the Wiley Creek Bridge is hazardous.
Neither Crawfordsville or Holley service will change.
The changes will include the creation of collection points for Oak Heights on Strawberry Ridge, at Osage and Meadowlark and Westwood, all at least a mile from the school.
Hawthorne will have a collection point at the intersection of Grape Street and 18th Avenue.
Ellison anticipates reducing the total number of routes by one and a half, he said.
The board declined to eliminate the transportation department’s enterprise fund and move $21,000 in revenues from the enterprise fund to the general fund.
The board voted 4-3 to transfer the funds, but to pass a motion requires five affirmative votes under board policy and state law, said Reynolds.
Those opposing the motion were Keene, Fassler and Redick. The Transportation Department earns the funds by contracting with other agencies, districts and schools to repair their buses. Customer payments reimburse district expenses plus a little more, which the department has used to purchase equipment that may not be budgeted.
Voting to transfer the funds, noting that the Transportation Department can still access those funds by following procedures and requesting the money, were Keeney, Neuschwander, Gerson and Reynolds.
Renewed Horton’s contract.
He requested they renew it for two years, keeping in mind that he may retire after one more year, he said.
Recognized Gerson for her service as a board member. She served for seven years. She was defeated in the May election by Billie Weber, who will take office next month.
Hired Lesli Jennings as a halftime temporary teacher at Hawthorne.
Accepted the resignation of Johnathan Bonner, English teacher at Sweet Home High School.
Approved a Five-Year Strategic Action Plan.