Madison Elementary SD 38 - AZ - State Budget Situation

Saturday, November 21st, 2009

Madison Budget Information

Thank you for your interest in the Madison Elementary School District's budget. This page will be updated regularly to keep you apprised of the latest information impacting Madison Schools.

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Contents of this page:

Click on a topic to go directly to that section or scroll down to see the entire document.

Topic	Last Updated
Budget Revisions Following Special Session	July 15, 2009
State Budget Situation	February 18, 2009
Madison's Legislative Position	February 18, 2009
How School Finance Works in Arizona	February 18, 2009
Madison's Various Funds	February 18, 2009
What has been Done So Far?	February 18, 2009
What this Means for Madison	February 18, 2009
What You Can Do	February 26, 2009
Submit your Ideas and Comments	March 25, 2009
Important Dates	March 6, 2009
See informational materials	April 1, 2009
Frequently Asked Questions	March 12, 2009

Madison Makes Fewer Reductions Following Legislative Session

During the recent legislative special session, the Governor signed a temporary budget, which runs through October 1, 2009, that makes several changes to education funding. These include:

Funds the 2% Inflation Factor based on January 2009, adding $110 to the base support level
The new base support level was reduced by $119 million (for a net reduction of $23.70 per student)
Reduces Soft Capital by $175 million
Districts now assume all utility costs

The legislative action allows Madison to make fewer reductions than originally expected. Madison originally planned for $3.3 million in reductions in Plan I. We now believe we only need to make $2,497,000 in reductions as shown below:

2008/2009 Budget Reduction	Reduction of $400,000
Reduction in Classroom Site Fund	Reduction of $500,000
Lane Movement	Increase in Cost of $75,000
Insurance Costs	Increase in Cost of $262,000
Contingency	Increase in Cost of $240,000
Soft Capital	Reduction of $1,020,000 (this is an 87% reduction in Soft Capital for Madison)
	Total of $2,497,000 in Reductions

This allows Madison to reinstate $803,000 ($345,000 in previous reductions and $458,000 into contingency). The new pamphlet outlines the items that have been reinstated; these items are boxed. Bolded descriptions explain any changes that were made to the original proposal as well as any change in savings.

Please keep in mind, this budget is only temporary so more changes may occur over the next few months.

We believe the majority of items that have been reinstated can be removed if necessary.

State Budget Situation

As we all know the State of Arizona, as well as the rest of the nation is experiencing an economic crisis. Retail sales are the lowest in decades, foreclosures continue to increase, and unemployment is expected to enter into the double digits.

Arizona's current budget for the remainder of this fiscal year is an estimated $1.6 billion short. We are expecting a deficit of $3.5 billion for 2010. With education making up 43% of the state's budget, legislators are focusing on K-12 education programs when it comes to making cuts.

Madison 's Legislative Position

The Madison School District understands the economic crisis the State of Arizona faces and knows reductions in education funding will be required. Therefore, we are asking the legislature to allow districts to function like a business and reduce expenditure authority by a specified percentage across all districts. We would also ask that districts be allowed to use any of their funding sources to meet their obligations. This would require a temporary suspension of current legal requirements. However, it would provide flexibility, local control, and equality among districts.

We simply request to follow a business model when it comes to the reduction of funding and allow a district's leadership and governing board to make those decisions that are best for our individual communities.

We would not dictate that a business eliminate a service its clients value. Madison appeals to the same approach.

How School Finance Works in Arizona

You've heard that Arizona ranks 49^th in the nation when it comes to per pupil funding.

School funding is based on a complicated statutory formula set by the Legislature. The amount schools receive per student is based on the 100^th day Average Daily Membership (ADM) or average number of students enrolled each day.

One aspect of the formula is the Base Support Level which guarantees $3,291 per student. The Legislature has added only minimal inflationary funding of $2,000 since its inception over 20 years ago. This formula does not provide adequate funding for instructional areas such as gifted services, special education, and English Language Learner programs, programs that obviously require more resources. Nor does it provide money for the many unfunded mandates school districts must meet.

This lengthy formula results in Arizona public schools receiving roughly $4,542 per student from the state, ranking us 49^th in the nation. That $4,542 makes up the Maintenance and Operations and Capital funds which are directed toward teacher salaries, transportation, and operating our school buildings among a host of other areas.

Madison 's Various Funds

These funds primarily go into the district's Maintenance and Operations Fund which covers items such as salaries, benefits, and student transportation costs.

Below is a breakdown of how each M&O dollar is spent.

SchoolCenter Picture

Expense Category	Description of Expenses	Percent of Expenses
A. Classroom Instruction	Primarily includes salary and benefits for classroom teachers and other classroom employees. Included are the activities of aides or classroom assistants of any type that assist in the instructional process.	58.5%
B. Business, Central, and General Support Services	District office support, superintendent and executive administration, governing board activities, elections, financial services, human resources, information technology, business services.	5.5%
C. Building Operations & Maintenance	Operations and maintenance of buildings and grounds, custodial services, vehicle operations, school safety.	14.2%
D. School Administration	Principals, assistant principals, school secretaries.	6.4%
E. Student Support	Attendance clerks, counselors, psychologists, speech pathologists, occupational therapists, physical therapists, school nurses.	7.1%
F. Student Transportation	Activities involved in operating vehicles for student transportation, from the time the vehicles leave the point of storage until they return to the point of storage. These include driving buses or other student transportation vehicles.	4.6%
G. Instructional Support	Curriculum development, instructional staff training, library and media services, instructional related technology, student assessment.	3.7%

M&O funds make up the majority of the district's budget. But there are other sources of funding. These funds provide for classroom supplies and materials, equipment, and support for the various program mandates such as English Language Acquisition. However, these funds can only be used for the items in which they were intended and cannot be mixed.

M & O	Capital	Other	Federal/State

Expense Category	Description of Expenses	Percent of Expenses
M & O	The largest of the funds. M&O covers salaries, benefits, utilities, and transportation.	67%
Capital	Provides for instructional and classroom materials such as textbooks, workbooks, library books, school buses.	14%
Other	Revenues brought in from fee-based programs such as Community Education and Food Services.	11%
Federal & State	Monies provided for mandatory programs such as English Language Acquisition.	8%

What has been Done So Far?

On January 31, the Legislature made a decision for the current 2009 budget, cutting $119 million in K-12 education. The Legislature's actions reduced Madison's Maintenance & Operations budget for the current school year by 2.34% and our Capital budget by 10.5%.

The Legislature is still working on a decision for the 2009-2010 budget.

What this Means for Madison

Madison must now slash $657,000 from the remaining school year's budget and immediately make reductions. This means the elimination of the following planned purchases: library books and materials, textbooks, workbooks, supplemental curriculum adoptions to art and music, software programs, equipment and furnishings, and air conditioning retrofits for buses.

We expect to be hit even harder next year with the state shortfall to be more than twice this year's amount.

Madison is expecting to make between 3 and 4.8 million dollars in cuts for next year.

What You Can Do

There are a number of things parents, staff, and community members can do in support of education:

Join the Citizen's Advisory Council

Made up of parents and community members, the CAC assesses legislative issues for their impact on public education, specifically as they pertain to Madison. To get involved, please contact Co-Chair Rhonda Olson at rhonda@rhonda.com. Visit www.madisoncac.com for more information.