But with the May 24 first budget reading two weeks away, the goal is still the same.
“The goal of this administration is still to present a balanced budget to you on May 24,” Superintendent Bennie Bennett told the school board Monday night at the budget work session at the Learning Center.
In March and April, the district thought it would have $39.2 million. But projections for next school year shrunk revenue by $247,759, says Chief Financial Officer Susan Dowd.
Now Dowd projects a budget of $38.9 million, which is $2.6 million shorter than last year’s budget.
But there are new money-saving options courtesy of proposals in state legislature: The district may be able to withhold teacher supply funding.
It also could save by not paying teacher salary “step” increases, or in other words withholding the roughly 2 percent salary add-on teachers get each year.
Cutting supply funding
Typically, teachers get $275 to spend on their classroom each year.
Dowd thinks that per-teacher supply money will drop to $250 for each teacher next year. That per teacher cost totals $125,000 for the districts’ roughly 500 teachers.
But the state may allow the district to use that $125,000 elsewhere for teachers.
“What they’re giving school boards the opportunity to do is say, ’OK. You can take these funds and reduce furlough days, reduce the number of positions you have to eliminate—whatever,’” said Dowd. “It’s with salaries that you can work with instead of giving that teacher a check for $250 at the beginning of the school year, you give them a letter that says, ’Instead of teacher supply funds, we have elected to reduce the number of furlough days...’”
“So I have included that in here for you to see what that would look like for this budget,” said Dowd of the budget worksheet she and board members held.
Using the $125,000 supply total “would amount to (saving) about one furlough for teachers,” she said.
Another option: No step
“Legislation is also allowing you as a school board not to give a teacher step increase,” said Dowd to the seven board members Monday night.
Paying the teacher salary step next school year costs about $298,000, Dowd estimated.
“If you were to choose to elect not to give that (step increase) that would eliminate another two furlough days within the district,” said Dowd.
The March budget draft proposed a four-to-eight furlough plan with four furloughs days for teachers and eight furlough days for administrators.
Cutting both the teachers’ supply fund and salary step increases cuts the 4-8 day furlough plan down to a one-day teacher furlough and two-day administrative furlough.
Both admin and board members spoke about expecting not-yet-seen mid-year money cuts.
Some want ready-to-use furloughs to soften the blow and perhaps prevent mid-year layoffs.
“What do we fall back on when there’s a midyear cut?” asked Bennett.
“The only answer to that question is to furlough,” said Board Member Jody Hamm.
“And if we use four and eight (day furloughs) at the front of the year, then we don’t have it,” said Bennett. “What do you do in the middle of the year?”
The discussion
But saving money and furlough time means scraping off step money for about 300 district teachers.
“We’re going to cheat the 300 this year,” said board member Ike Bledsoe, questioning the elimination of the salary step increase.
Bledsoe was also concerned about teachers who have been teaching for 20 years that wouldn’t get the increase in their two remaining years left to receive the extra money.
Teachers who have taught for 22 year or more do not get the increase.
“When you get 22 years,” Bledsoe said, “you don’t care. You’re not going to get it. But if somebody’s been teaching for 20 years and we don’t give it this year and we don’t give it next year, they’re just out. Is that right?
“They’re going to be out some (money) anyway,” said Bennett. “Because if not, those folks are going to look at a four-day furlough.”
“The reality is we hit the 300 (affected teachers) now with no step increase, go ahead and take that off the table, and we avoid mid-year layoffs because we still have the furloughs to fall back on,” said board member Jody Hamm.
“Hopefully, yes,” said Dowd.
Dowd said the salary step increase is about a 2 percent salary increase but that “it’s different at different certification levels,” she said.
Board member Lucy Anne Meetze calculated that teachers would lose about $800 dollars from either a 4-day furlough or a step loss.
“As far as the money loss, it’s the same,” Meetze said. “But I know we’ve got to think about mid-year cuts.”
Meetze, in looking for the best option, pointed out it might be better to lose $800 in furloughs with four fewer days to work than lose $800 though the step loss and work a full year.
“But someone just said it: you’re going to take 300 teachers and you’re going to lose the same amount of money either way. But in one way, you lose $800, but you you’re going to work 186 days instead of 190,” said Meetze. “If we take their step, we’re going to require them to work 190 days and still lose that $800.”
Board chairman Don Saylor had his mind on mid-year cuts.
“I think it goes back to that we have to have some options for November and December,” he said. “I’d rather have furlough days in my hand than have to lay somebody off at Christmastime...”
The district absorbed some mid-year cuts with it’s roughly $1 million in “contingency” padding last year. That contingency fund is now completely threadbare and next year’s cushion is small.
“We’re stretching to get a couple hundred thousand in contingency now,” Bennett said of budget plans for next school year.
“There’s no good option,” said Dowd near the start of the meeting. “We’re trying to do the best of the worse.”
What’s next
May 24—First budget reading
June 7—Public hearing on the budget
June 28—Monthly board meeting with second and final reading for the budget.
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