Letter To The Editor – The BCS Budget Process

Dear Editor,
As the School District developed a 2010-2011 budget for the Berlin School District, the following information is offered for public review.  The Board of Education took a vote at the March 9 and 16 meetings to close Grafton Elementary and supply modular units at the Berlin Elementary School for four classrooms.
Process Of Starting The Budget Work For 2010-11
The first step included collecting information from teachers, administrators and non-instructional staff of District needs and ideas for reductions in the budget.  Then the District analyzed a) where we were and b) where we needed to go.  We set a tax levy increase target somewhere between a zero increase and 3%.
Facts Of The Challenges
The $1.4 million loss in state aid has an instant 16.4% impact on the revenue stream and tax levy. The Governor’s proposal also indicated using Stimulus Funds of $508,000 to reduce the loss.
Increases for a new budget included rising salary, retirement increases due to less state support of the retirement systems and changing benefit costs, all of which drove the new budget up some $613,000, equivalent to 7% on the tax levy. If there were no closing of the Grafton Building, the total impact on a new budget for 2010-11 with all other reductions would have required an overall 18% increase on the tax levy.
Challenges – What To Do?
The District was faced with challenges of what to do to drive the budget total down and contain the costs?  Moreover, what can be done to contain the costs, or lower the base of expenditures for the long term?  The District had already done that in 2009-10 budget with the closing of Stephentown Elementary, resulting in a .61% decrease in the base budget and a zero tax levy impact.
Conclusions
By closing Grafton Elementary, there is a decrease in staffing, expenditures and educational services reductions, leading to an economy of scale in the total budget costs.  Such scale includes class sizes of 18-20 in pre-k to kindergarten, 20-22 students in grades 1-2 and 23-25 students in grades 3-12 for planning purposes.
Closing Grafton reduced instructional expenditures by $540,000 and reduces an additional building operational costs of $87,000 (heating, electric, phone line, T1 lines, etc.), for a total reduction of $627,888.
Leasing modular units to house four classrooms at Berlin Elementary School site reduced costs and eliminated ongoing Grafton expenses of more than $3,000,000 over 5 years.
The end result is the 2010-11 school budget only rises by 3.17% that leads to a 2.99% tax levy increase at this point.
Now, the question was how to deal with the application of revenue to make a budget that the public can support.  Fortunately, the District planned some reserves for tough times.  But the District has to manage reserves for continued tough times over the next several years. This year the District plans to use available resources as follows:
• Use of planned reserves in the 2010-11 budget of $308,000
• Use of Appropriated Fund Balance of $300,000
• A one time use of  $392,000 for the initial set up and leasing costs for the modular units from a reserve account
• Careful Planning for 2010-11 program budget expenditures
• A reallocation of other 2009-10 Reserve Accounts
• Maximize purchases through BOCES aidable services and programs
• Contractual talks with bargaining units to hold costs down, including the 55/25 Retirement Legislation for teaching staff age 55 with 25 years of service.
The overall impact includes:
• Reduction of costs and tax levy impact from 18%, with Grafton open, to 1.74% with the closing and other reductions.
• Consolidated elementary programs on a single site in four attractive building modular units with restroom facilities planned for two pre-k and two kindergarten classrooms
• Substantial savings in district-wide building operational costs for the long term.
• Preservation of educational programs and initiatives developed over the last three period, (staff development, science lab updates, technology in the classrooms, internet connectivity upgrades and Middle School Summer Programs).
• The addition of Distance Learning opportunities from a state grant
• Reduction of ten staff district-wide
• Greater efficiency in scheduling activities for the elementary programs
• Reductions of operational costs of food service and student transportation,
• A budget to budget increase of $476,265, including the modular costs of $391,160 for year 1. The ongoing lease cost of $21,600 per year for a four year period is balanced against the previous Grafton annual expense of  an estimated $627,000 per year.
• A long term five-year financial plan which contains future costs in single digit projections for tax levy.
Members of the public are reminded to vote on the budget and in the board election on May 18 from 12 to 9 pm in the Berlin Fire Hall. Absentee ballots are available from the District Clerk, Mary Grant, or by calling 658-2690.
Yours truly,
Charlotte Gregory, Interim Superintendent