School board discusses budget cuts
District may see certified, support staff reductions
Eight Marion-Florence USD 408 teachers waited for an 1 1/2 hour executive session to end Monday night to learn if staff would be cut for the next school year.
However, when the executive session called for the purpose of discussing personnel ended, no comments or decisions were made.
With the loss of state budget authority, declining enrollment, and the increased cost of health benefits, plus increasing fuel, utility costs and other factors, USD 408 and most school districts across the state are facing a budget crisis.
In a report prepared for the board, business manager and board clerk Martin Tice said one way of reducing a projected $282,000 budget deficit during the 2003-04 school year would be to reduce two full-time certified staff and two support staff. The reduction of two teachers would save $64,000, while the elimination of two support staff would save $28,000.
Tice said the district was losing $60,000 in budget authority during the current school year and was projected to lose $150,000 more next year. Also, it will cost the district $14,000 more to pay 21 certified staff who move up steps on the district pay scale. "That's with no change in base, no change in schedule, with certified staff frozen, and no increase for administrators," Tice said.
It will cost the district $13,000 more in "support steps" to pay 14 support staff with salaries frozen and no increase.
"Even if we do nothing to the salary schedule it still costs us 'x amount' of dollars to fund the steps," Superintendent Gerald Henderson explained.
Tice said the district was expecting at least a 15 percent increase in health insurance costs "if we continue picking up a single policy." That will run about $45,000, he said.
"We'll need $282,000 to balance the budget at this point," he said.
Along with the $64,000 which would be saved in staff reduction, the district could cut equipment 50 percent for a savings of $50,000; cut the repair budget in half for a $100,000 savings; and reduce transportation replacement 50 percent for a $50,000 savings.
"That would leave us a net balance of $10,000 ahead," he said. "But that doesn't account for the unknowns — an increase in utility costs, fuel costs, science and reading curriculum costs, and whatever ramifications come from the state budget crisis."
Missy Stubenhofer said the new reading curriculum would cost $45,000.
Tice said he received information late Monday afternoon from the Kansas Association of School Boards which indicated the state will be facing an additional $230 million revenue shortage this year and next.
"More than likely we'll see budget cuts again this year," he said. "The March 1 payment from the state (to school districts) is supposed to show up tomorrow (March 10) with the emphasis on supposed to. They're already projecting that we'll receive our last payment in the next fiscal year."
In fact, the Legislature has already passed a law so school districts won't be "written up" by auditors if it happens again, he said.
"If that $230 million is correct, they've already cut every other agency in the state if they're cut more they'll have to close the doors," Tice said, explaining that education makes up 50 percent of the state budget. "They'll have to hit education."
With $115 million of the $230 million budget deficit going to education that would translate into a $200,000 decrease in budget authority for the remainder of this year and the next. "That would be $200,000 added to what we're talking about," he said.
One way of reducing the impact to the district would be to increase the Local Option Budget (LOB), but keeping the mill levy the same, Tice said.
"Many districts across the state are maxed out on LOB. They'll have to reduce staff someplace if most of their budget involves people," he said.
Board member Gene Bowers asked about the district's contingency reserve fund. Tice said it could be used for whatever the board declares an emergency, but noted it only had a $50,000 balance.
Board member Susan Robson wondered whether the district's special education costs would increase. Superintendent Gerald Henderson said it was projected the cost would remain the same.
Board member Doug Sharp questioned the impact of fuel costs on the budget. Tice said he didn't think it would be an issue this year. Currently, $14,000 had been spent on fuel and $25,000 was budgeted.
"The only place we have any real hope of reducing the budget by large amounts is with staff," Tice said.
And as he said during last month's meeting, Martin noted the district could be looking at a $500,000 to $600,000 shortfall within the next three years due to declining enrollment.
"Which makes this job less fun than it's been for some time," Tice added.
However, he noted USD 408 was not in dire straits like some other districts due to conservative measures by the board and "doing what was necessary."
Marion Elementary School teacher Julie Trapp questioned whether the board would take suggestions from teachers regarding what they thought could be cut. Board president Rex Savage said the board would listen, although it would have the final decision.
Board member Roger Hannaford III questioned whether consolidation would become a big issue. Henderson said it would take "intelligent conversation" at the state level, and said the proposal for four regional school districts which supposedly would make districts run more like a business such as "Wal-Mart or McDonald's" would not work.
"There's room for talk about consolidation in Kansas. There are some things that make sense, like using county boundaries," Henderson said, but noted it would cause a political upheaval. "The last time it happened in 1965 it brought in a whole new Legislature."
