Schools: State cuts will be costly locally

http://www.fosters.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110220/GJNEWS_01/702209903 Follow link to full article in Foster's Democrat.

The Fosters Daily Democrat reports that "School districts are bracing for unplanned expenses under the education-related proposals of Gov. John Lynch's budget.

As part of his 2012-2013 fiscal year budget plan, Lynch said Tuesday he would level-fund adequacy aid for school districts to 2011 levels. He also proposes funding changes to building and special education aid and eliminating the state subsidy for retirement costs.

They are changes local school officials are anticipating their districts will have to absorb.

Gov. Wentworth Regional School District Superintendent John Robertson called the governor's budget "very discouraging" and said it demonstrates an all-too familiar downshifting of costs from the state to the school districts.

"From a public school perspective, I find it frustrating for a governor to continue to pass new regulations and mandates and leave its local school districts to find the means of funding all these requirements," he said.

Robertson said the district would lose $1,355,000 in building aid under Lynch's budget, and his concern is being able to fund building requirements for issues like air quality, with mandated upgrades.

Last year, the state put a moratorium on building aid, and it's set to expire June 30. Building aid provides 30 to 55 percent of the cost of public school building projects, and poorer communities can get up to 60 percent.

Lynch's budget would fund 40 percent of building aid projects in the program in fiscal year 2012 and restore funding of 100 percent for 2013.

Another area of concern for districts is how Lynch's budget reforms the formula for state funding for catastrophic aid, which also provides special education aid. His formula limits assistance to cases costing more than 10 times the state average.

Robertson said, "Once again, our government fails to live up to its commitments" regarding state aid for special education, and recalled when special education laws were mandated and schools were supposed to receive 40 percent state aid.

Governor Wentworth would lose about $355,000 in catastrophic aid with the governor's funding formula.

Changes to the state contribution to the retirement system also have caught the attention of area school districts. Lynch's budget eliminates the state subsidy for retirement costs, which knocks its current share of 25 percent down to zero.

The city/state employer-related contribution split for teacher, police and fire employees historically had been set at 65/35; however, the state's share has been reduced since last year. The city/state split is currently 75/25, and in 2012, the state's share will be eliminated.

"Our budget accounted for the fact that we'd been picking up less, but never did we imagine we'd be picking up 100 percent," said Robertson.

"What the state has been doing is slowly backing out of the share it has picked up," Robertson said. "They're dumping that portion onto the community and perhaps a portion on local communities."

He added the proposed changes "will end up meaning we've got to make these kinds of cuts that will end up having a terrible impact on staff."

Colin Manning, spokesman for Lynch, said the governor's budget works to reduce the cost structure of the state government.

"With these changes, it's clear these are municipality costs and not state costs," he said of the changes to the state's contributions.