Superintendent Predicts $1.34 million Budget Shortfall

Superintendent of the Bernards school district Valerie Goger presented her analysis of the 2010-11 budget situation for Benards Township schools at the Board of Education meeting yesterday, predicting a budget shortfall of $1,346,000.

Due to an $8 billion projected New Jersey state budget deficit, many of the state's school districts are facing a challenging budget season as they try to cope with decreasing state aid.

Goger said the school district is making several assumptions as they put together the budget for 2010-11. The district will assume a 10 percent decrease in state aid (total loss of $473,000), 10 percent increase in health insurance costs, 8 percent increase in transportation costs and a 4 percent tax cap among other things.

Savings plan

To make up for the loss, the schools will have to face difficult decisions. Potential gap closers could come from a less than expected reduction in state aid, negotiated gains in salary and health care costs, a larger than standard cap waiver or programmatic changes. Goger does not expect the state to provide a great deal of relief on its own.

"The governor maybe will not reduce state aid. … Maybe it will be 90 degrees tomorrow, I don't know," Goger quipped at the meeting.

Another reason for budget uncertainty and another potential gap closer would be state funding for special education extraordinary costs. The state has historically paid out little for extraordinary costs, although a new formula instituted by Governor Corzine last year led to full funding of the program in the district.

"In past years very little money was paid out," Goger said. "Even though this was a funding formula on the books, most years it was not funded either at all or fully."

The school district was surprised to receive their full payment of $2 million last year, and will budget conservatively for $650,000, although that number is not guaranteed.

Current and projected state aid

In total, Bernard's school district currently receives $4.7 million in state aid. As part of the School Funding Reform Act of 2008, Bernards was supposed to receive a 20 percent increase in state aid for each of three years starting in 2008 because the district was designated as having a below adequate budget and tax revenue.

The district received its 20 percent increase in '08, but only received a 5 percent increase in 2009. Goger predicts that the school will actually see the 10 percent decrease in aid for 2010-11 because of the state deficit.

The unfulfilled rise in state aid this year has left Bernards with a $2.9 million shortfall for 2009-10. That money has been covered by accepting an $800,000 cap waiver, $700,000 in new revenue and $1.4 million in spending cuts.

Program and staffing reductions in 2009-10

To recoup the $1.4 million, class sizes were expanded in the elementary schools and staffing was reduced.

Five high school electives staffers were released from the high school, one guidance staff member was let go in the middle school and the elementary schools lost five members from the classroom, two from enrichment and two from the Spanish department. Several reductions were also made in administration and the transportation cost burden was increased for families.

The district tries to keep elementary class sizes to 22 or fewer students, but cuts forced each of the elementary schools to have at least one class over that mark.

The district also considered but did not move from a 9-period day to an 8-period day at Ridge High School or shorten kindergarten schedules to a half-day format to help save money in the budget.

The changes that were made eliminate elementary enrichment program, the elementary Spanish program, increased class sizes (32 percent of Ridge classes have more than 26 students) and reduced computer and media lab times for elementary students, according to Goger's report.

Laura Begg of Pitney Court spoke in the public comment portion of the meeting about the enrichment cuts at the elementary schools. "I just want to let you know that we are experiencing an extreme loss at elementary schools with the removal of the enrichment program," Begg said.  "I specifically feel it right now because I am chairing the science fair program at Cedar Hill."

The program used to be run as part of the school's enrichment offerings but now has to be run through the PTO and parent volunteers. "It is very hard for parents who are trying to work and keep their employment to come in on two or three or four lunch periods to work with a group of students," Begg said.

School supply cuts

Classroom supply spending in district schools has steadily declined in recent years as well.

In the elementary schools, the average cost per student has decreased $52 over the last two years, a total reduction of $122,616. Similarly at William Annin Middle School average supply costs per student dropped $43 over the last two years (total reducation of $59,555) and at Ridge, the number dropped $24 (total reducation of $40,536).

Media Center supply spending is also down over the past two years. The schools in the district combined to reduce media center spending by $54,773 from 2007-08 to 2009-10.

Timetable

The Board of Education finance team will continue to work on the 2010-11 budget, with the initial budget due on Feb. 15 for schools requesting waivers. State aid notifications will be made in late March and a public hearing on the budget will be made shortly thereafter.

The Board will also discuss the budget at their regular meetings on Jan. 25, Feb. 15 and March 15.