Schools plug holes in budget after state demands more cuts

Douglas County School Board trustees were filling sandbags in an effort to stem a tide of red ink on Tuesday night even as the tsunami warnings were going off.

Board members cut $1.16 million from their budget in an effort to meet a state requirement that the district cut 4.2 percent.

However, Superintendent of Schools Carol Lark warned that she was told by state budget officials to anticipate a 14-percent cut next year and another 14 percent the year after that.

Cutting field trips, having athletes pay to play sports, cutting travel to nonleague sporting events and making travel off campus more efficient are all avenues trustees examined on Tuesday night.

Lark said the district's budget cuts have been in a fluid condition since the middle of summer.

"We started at $650,000, then it rose to $1 million and now it's $1.2 million," she said.

Lark said she was meeting with other superintendents on Wednesday.

"I'm hoping it's not further bad news," she said.

District Chief Financial Officer Holly Luna said the state is distributing money to the districts on a monthly instead of a quarterly basis in order to increase its interest revenue.

Trustees approved a $35.5 million budget in spring, setting aside $75,000 for cuts based on information the district received.

"Our attempt was to keep as far away from the classroom as possible," Lark said of the proposed cuts.

The district is still a little more than $110,000 light in cuts that have to be made this year after board members saved a state grant program that would have cut $294,397 from the budget.

Scarselli Elementary School Principal Brandon Swain, teachers and a parent led the charge to protect the grants that pay for tutors at the school.

Parent Amy Jackson said her son acted out because he was afraid to read.

"In a year of being tutored he came out from under his desk," she said. "If it wasn't for this program, he would have been left behind."

Lark had already been making progress in the largest cut through attrition of full-time employees and reorganization. She said that will save the district $515,628.

"You can't take these positions and not affect service," Lark said. "But we're looking at the real world."

Cutting text book purchases will remove $300,000 from the budget. Cuts from school and district support discretionary funds will cut another $281,000.

Board members discussed the possibility of cutting transportation costs. Luna pointed out that 80 percent of the district's regular transportation costs are reimbursed by the state.

"Remember that every dollar you cut out of transportation is really just 20 cents," she said.

There are several wildcards that could sink the budget, including a complaint by the district's two unions filed with the Employee Management Relations Board. The unions are seeking reinstatement of the district's early retirement plan, which cost the district $265,000.

Lark said the program saved the district money when it was growing, but with lower enrollment it is costing more. She said the board policy included a clause saying they could remove the policy. However the teachers and classified employees say it should be negotiable as part of their contract.