WI State Journal: Madison schools face $30 million budget hole

[WISCwrestlingfan]

Preface Note - The WI wrestling community should start now preparing for/anticipating a "Save Madison Wrestling" campaign.  Since the Madison School Board went after/reduced/cut athletics in good times, I hate to see what happens in lean times...not to mention, $30 million is huge hole.  

http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/education/local_schools/article_1b7cc486-16c6-11df-906a-001cc4c002e0.html

'A horrible situation'
Madison schools face $30 million budget hole

Wisconsin State Journal
By Gayle Worland | 608-252-6188 | gworland@madison.com | Posted: Thursday, February 11, 2010 6:45 am

The Madison School District is facing a $30 million budget hole for 2010-11, a dilemma that could force school board members this spring to order massive cuts in programs, dramatically raise property taxes, or impose a combination of both.

District officials will unveil a list of possible cuts -- which could include layoffs -- next month, with public hearings to follow.

"This is a big number," School Board President Arlene Silveira said. "So we have to look at how we do business, we have to look at efficiencies, we have to look at our overall budget, and we are going to have to make hard decisions. We are in a horrible situation right now, and we do have to look at all options."

Even with the maximum hike in school property taxes -- $28.6 million, or a jump of $312.50 for the owner of a $250,000 Madison home -- the district would have to close a $1.2 million budget gap, thanks in part to a 15 percent drop in state aid it had to swallow in 2009-10 and expects again for 2010-11.

The district, with a current budget of about $360 million, expects to receive $43.7 million from the state for 2010-11, which would be the lowest sum in 13 years, according to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau, and down from a high of $60.7 million in 2008-09. The district is receiving $51.5 million from the state for the current school year.

"I think what's happened is the state of Wisconsin has effectively passed along the tax problem to the local level, in terms of either we raise taxes to support public education, or public education isn't going to be supported," said Erik Kass, assistant superintendent for business services.

The district budget projections are based on the cost of providing current services next year, plus a 1 percent -- or $275,000 -- rise in supply and material costs, and salary and benefit increases called for in current contracts. But they do not include any new programs.

Last year the district found $12 million in one-time cost-saving measures that did not directly affect students, cushioning the blow of a $9 million drop in state funds in 2009-10. School property taxes on a $250,000 home rose $92.50 last year.

The school board will work to "balance the needs of our school and community" and has not discussed asking taxpayers to support a referendum, said Silveira. She said the schools' financial situation is the worst she's seen since 2007-08, when the district considered shuttering Lindbergh Elementary School to help close an $8 million budget gap.

"We're really trying to gather all the points of information now so that we have a total picture looking out over the next four or five years, and make decisions based on that," said Silveira, who said citizens can weigh in by e-mail at board@madison.k12.wi.us. The e-mail address reaches all seven board members and Superintendent Dan Nerad.

Projected school tax hikes

Faced with an expected $30 million budget hole for the 2010-11 school year, the Madison School Board will have to decide this spring whether to cut existing jobs and programs, raise taxes, or a impose a combination of the two.

Here are four scenarios for property tax hikes for the owner of a $250,000 home in the Madison school district, who paid $2,545 in school property taxes for 2009-10. The increase in taxing authority for the 2010-11 school year is projected to be $28.6 million.

If district taxes to full authority

Total tax bill: $2,858

Increase over 2009-10: $312.50

Remaining budget gap: $1,189,738

If district taxes to 75% of authority

Total tax bill: $2,780

Increase over 2009-10: $235

Remaining budget gap: $8,354,164

If district taxes to 50% of authority

Total tax bill: $2,702.50

Related Documents

    * Related: Madison School Board 2010-11 budget projections

Related Links

    * Related: Madison School Board contacts and meeting schedules

[WISCwrestlingfan]

Three recent newspaper articles on the Madison School District situation...sports are already in the line of fire...

Note 1 - "Tier 2" below deals with cutting Madison sports teams.

Note 2 - In Friday's WSJ paper, some Madison Board members already publicly say certain "Tiers" will not be on the chopping block (although they are on the potential list, like closing certain schools).  None of the Board members publicly came out and said anything about saving the items in Tier 2.

http://host.madison.com/article_94a9968a-28c9-11df-a514-001cc4c002e0.html

Possible Madison School District cuts

Posted: Friday, March 5, 2010 8:31 pm
Wisconsin State Journal

Madison School District administrators broke down the possible cuts into four tiers based on criteria that include the potential impact on the classroom and services to students. Tier 1 options have the least impact; Tier 4 options the most.

Tier 1

• Streamline food service staffing and purchasing, $190,000

• Refinance/restructure debt, $4,207,291

• Refinance payment to state retirement system, $1,100,000

• Freeze supply budgets, $125,000

Tier 2

• Increase admission prices to athletic events by $1, $35,094

• Cuts to Madison School & Community Recreation, $2,465,300

• Reduce building maintenance, $436,441

• Cut freshman sports teams with low participation, $79,777

Tier 3

• Provide bus service within 2 miles of a school instead of 1½ miles,    $250,000

• Cut 17.8 Reading Recovery teachers, $1,417,645

• Cut 11 elementary school teacher coaches, $876,073

• Cut 1.3 school nurse positions, $105,189

Tier 4

• Consolidate North Side elementary and middle schools,*    $1,261,708

• Cut 23.5 special-education teachers, $2,061,726

• Increase class sizes in middle and high schools, $1,911,432

• Eliminate school breakfast, $470,370

*This plan would close Lake View, Lindbergh and Mendota elementary schools, with students there moving to the adjacent buildings housing Gompers Elementary and Black Hawk Middle School. Black Hawk students would move to Sherman and O’Keeffe middle schools.

SOURCE: Madison School District

http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt_and_politics/article_387fb4c2-28c7-11df-8a77-001cc4c002e0.html

Facing a budget deficit, Madison schools are mulling an array of cuts

Doug Erickson | 608-252-6149 | derickson@madison.com | Posted: Friday, March 5, 2010 8:22 pm
Wisconsin State Journal

Madison school administrators laid out a grim list of possible cuts big and small Friday that School Board members can use as a starting point to solve a nearly $30 million hole in next year's budget.

The options range from the politically painless — restructuring debt, cutting postage costs — to the always explosive teacher layoffs and school closings.

But the school-closing option, which would close Lake View, Lindbergh and Mendota elementary schools on the city's North Side as part of a consolidation plan, already appears to be a nonstarter. A majority of board members said they won't go there.

"It's dead in the water for me," said Lucy Mathiak, board vice president.

President Arlene Silveira said the option is not on the table for her, either. Ditto for board members Marj Passman and Maya Cole, who said she immediately crossed out the option with a red pen.

Board members could decide to raise taxes enough to cover almost all of the $30 million, or they could opt to not raise taxes at all and cut $30 million. Neither option is considered palatable to board members or most residents, so some combination of the two is expected.

202 options

Superintendent Dan Nerad presented the list of 202 items as options, not recommendations, although he said he will want to make specific recommendations to the board this spring as the process unfolds.

The list is broken into four tiers, each reflecting about $7.5 million in cuts, with the fourth tier reflecting the deepest cuts under a worst-case scenario. If all of the cuts from all tiers were made — again, unlikely — about 250 staff positions would be eliminated.

The school-closing option and most of the teacher cuts appear under Tier 4. The options include increasing class sizes at the middle and high schools (eliminating 24 classroom teacher positions), and upping the caseload for special education teachers (eliminating 23.5 positions).

Reductions in the number of nurses, custodians, social workers, educational assistants and psychologists also are possible. But some board members said they have little stomach for considering cuts like those.

"As a former teacher, I relied on these people and their expertise to help me with the children in the classroom," Passman said. "We're going to keep everything as far away from the classroom as we can."

Different scenario

The district routinely faces budget holes, but this time is different.

In the past, gaps occurred due to state revenue caps — the district couldn't spend beyond a certain point without voter approval. This time, much of the problem is a big reduction in state aid.

To make up for that kind of reduction, board members could increase taxes without going to referendum. The board already has the authority to tax for $28.6 million of the nearly $30 million budget hole if it wanted to. (The $28.6 million figure includes $4 million of additional tax money next year that voters approved in a 2008 referendum.)

"It's a more dynamic process this time around, so it's important that we hear from folks on where they want us to draw the line between program cuts and tax increases," said board member Ed Hughes.

If the board taxed for the full $28.6 million, taxes would go up $312.50 next year on a $250,000 Madison home.

This year's operating budget is about $370 million. A comparable estimate for next year isn't available because so much is in flux, said Ken Syke, district spokesman.

[Click link above for the complete WI State Journal newspaper article.]

http://host.madison.com/ct/news/local/education/local_schools/article_f2ebea7e-0eb2-5cc7-92e0-e906b034332f.html

Madison school ‘budget gap’ really a tax gap

SUSAN TROLLER | The Capital Times | stroller@madison.com | Posted: Tuesday, March 2, 2010 6:00 am
The Capital Times

For months it’s been billed as a $30 million gap. But a closer look at the fiscal crisis facing the Madison School District next year reveals “budget gap” may be a bit of a misnomer.

Try “tax gap” or “revenue problem.” These are terms that Superintendent Dan Nerad — who is slated to offer his budget recommendations to the School Board on March 8 — and other school district players are starting to use to describe the financial troubles the district is facing.

What’s commonly been defined as the district’s budget gap in the past — the difference between the cost to continue existing programs and salaries and what the district is allowed to tax under state revenue caps — is actually $1.2 million. That’s the amount the district would still have to cut if the board were willing to tax to the maximum amount allowed under the state revenue limits. (And in past years, Madison and almost every other district in the state have taxed to the limit.) But if you add in the drop in revenue from the state — about $17 million for the 2010-2011 budget — the gap grows to $18.2 million.

It’s fair to ask then, what makes up the other $11.6 million that the administration calls the $29.8 million 2010-2011 budget gap? In a rather unorthodox manner, Nerad and company are including two other figures: $4 million in levying authority the district was granted through the 2008 referendum and $7.6 million in levying authority within the revenue limit formula.

Confused? You’re not alone. It’s got many folks scratching their heads. But the bottom line is this: Although the district has the authority to raise property taxes up to $312 on an average $250,000 home, it’s unlikely the board would want to reap that amount of revenue ($11.6 million) from increased taxes. Large property tax hikes — never popular — are particularly painful in the current economy.

[Click link above for the complete The Capital Times newspaper article.]

http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/education/local_schools/article_eb854b76-25a8-11df-a0a0-001cc4c002e0.html

Plan would raise MSCR fees and cut offerings

Gayle Worland | 608-252-6188 | gworland@madison.com | Posted: Monday, March 1, 2010 9:08 pm
Wisconsin State Journal

Fees for Madison School and Community Recreation programs would jump at least 10 percent and several summer youth programs would be eliminated under a proposal under consideration by the Madison School Board.

The list of $1.8 million in suggested cuts and fee hikes is one of the first steps in dealing with a $30 million district-wide budget hole for the 2010-11 school year that the board must resolve this spring either through slashing programs, hiking property taxes, or a combination of the two.

[Click link above for the complete WI State Journal newspaper article.]

[WISCwrestlingfan]

Tier 2

• Increase admission prices to athletic events by $1, $35,094

• Cuts to Madison School & Community Recreation, $2,465,300

• Reduce building maintenance, $436,441

• Cut freshman sports teams with low participation, $79,777

We need to keep an eye on this...the assault on sports in Madison continues...

Now the Madison School Board has made nearly all of Tier 4 and parts of Tier 3 "off the table" for elimination.

Which means the cuts are more likely to occur in Tiers 1 & 2 including:
    * Tier 2 - Dealing with "sports teams with low participation."
    * Tier 4 - Dealing with elementary coaches (which was the one thing kept "on the table").

http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/education/article_a10a4662-3630-11df-b43d-001cc4c03286.html

School board trims list of potential cuts

By DEVIN ROSE | drose@madison.com | 608-252-6143 | Posted: Monday, March 22, 2010 10:57 pm
Wisconsin State Journal

Madison School Board members voted unanimously at a special meeting Monday night to remove from consideration a list of items deemed among the most severe, or Tier 4 options, for cuts to fill a nearly $30 million budget hole for next year.

The board also removed psychologists, social workers and some other Tier 3 positions from the list of potential cuts.

After a nearly three-hour public hearing in which dozens of homeowners, students and parents asked the board not to cut positions and programs from the overall list of more than 200 items divided into four tiers, the board voted to remove all the items in Tier 4 from consideration for cutting except elementary school coaches, which will be discussed at another meeting.

The Tier 4 cuts had included closing Lake View, Lindbergh and Mendota elementary schools on the city's North Side as part of a consolidation plan.

Board member Marj Passman successfully proposed removing the elimination of social workers, psychologists, nurses, guidance counselors, and behavior and learning staff from Tier 3 as well.  ...

[Click link above for the complete newspaper article.]