The school budget challenge

Massive cuts, higher taxes or a combination of both is in store for BASD

By Ed Nadolski

Editor in Chief

As he launched a month-long community budget information tour Monday, Burlington Area School District Superintendent David Moyer set out to correct what he considers misinformation regarding district operations, lay out the steep budget challenges facing district residents and make one thing perfectly clear:

“In this battle for the heart and soul of Burlington, one thing is certain – Burlington will get the public school system it deserves,” he told members of the local Rotary Club Monday.

And while that comment was intended to put the issue in the hands of district residents, it also serves as a line in the sand of sorts for community factions that have been battling at public meetings and the ballot box over district finances since late last summer.

On one side is a charged up group of fiscal conservatives who contend the district hasn’t done enough to save taxpayers money. Two of the candidates generally associated with that group – Philip Ketterhagen and Roger Koldeway – were the top vote getters in the recent School Board primary.

On the other side is a less intensely focused but nonetheless formidable group of residents – many of them parents of school-age children – who believe the financial struggle is part of a fundamental shift in school funding from the state to the local level and drastic cuts to programs will adversely impact local education.

The April 3 School Board election – which pits incumbents John Anderson and Susan Kessler against challengers Ketterhagen and Koldeway – will likely serve as a referendum of sorts on the district’s financial course.

A ‘balanced’ approach

On Monday, Moyer made no reference to the election in his remarks, but he did make it clear he believes a balanced approach of tax increases and program cuts is the best course.

“We’re hoping to control costs and still try to balance the needs of everyone in the system,” he said. “We want to continue fiscal conservatism with and emphasis on improving student achievement.”

This will be the final BASD budget for Moyer, who will leave the district after two years July 1 to accept a similar job in Moline, Ill. And while school districts throughout the state are facing similar challenges, district officials are dealing with budget pressures that will make last year’s difficult process pale in comparison.

The district is facing a loss in state aid of $2.1 to $2.5 million for next school year. That means even if officials present a budget with no increase in spending, the tax levy would have to increase 10.4 percent to offset the loss in state aid.

In more graphic terms, a budget freeze for 2012-13 would increase the equalized taxes on a district home valued at $200,000 by $212 to make up for the shortfall in revenue.

If officials opted to freeze taxes instead, they would have to cut $2.5 million from the budget, Moyer said.

According to figures compiled by district officials, reducing spending equivalent to declining enrollment would require a $174 tax increase on a $200,000 home. Other options include a 4 percent tax increase, which would cost $84 more and require $1.8 million in program cuts; or a 2 percent tax increase, which would cost $40 more and require $2.2 million in cuts.

“We are at a crossroads,” Moyer said, noting that parents are very protective of the many programs offered in the district and will be forced to make some tough choices in order to limit tax increases.

Programs valued

Moyer noted that Burlington High School alone offers 58 extra- and co-curricular activities.

“People have gotten used to that level of activity,” Moyer said.

Information compiled recently by the BHS activities department indicates those athletics, clubs, arts and programs are vital to producing high-achieving students. During the current school year, the 514 students participating in these activities had an average grade-point average of 3.45, compared to the 2.77 average posted by the rest of the student body.

The School Board and the community will have to make value judgments regarding activities and academics if they intend to mitigate tax increases.

Moyer asked those attending Monday’s meeting to consider the concept of “public good.” When student achievement declines, social ills increase.

“I believe it’s in everybody’s best interest to have strong schools,” he said, noting that a reluctance to fund schools at a sufficient level is akin to cutting off your nose to spite your face.

Moyer also made an attempt to demonstrate that BASD has been responsible with the public’s money in recent years.

Citing a comparison of 27 school district taxing bodies in Racine, Kenosha and Walworth counties, Moyer said Burlington ranks 22nd (sixth lowest) with an equalized tax rate of $10.17. If BASD maxed out its legal taxing authority, it could raise its levy 21 percent and would rank just fourth highest on the list.

“Every decision that is made this year will be made in an effort to keep the already modest tax rates low,” Moyer wrote in the most recent district newsletter.

Teachers seen as key

As he has done on other public occasions recently, Moyer also spoke in support of the district’s approach to handling the cost of benefits for staff members. This year the district required teachers and other staff members to pay half of their retirement contributions and saved $1 million by switching health insurance carriers and plans. BASD did not, however, require teachers to pay up to 12.6 percent of their health insurance premiums as allowed by the state.

That now remains an option for the coming budget, he said, noting he didn’t want the district to saddle teachers with the impact of all those compensation cuts in a single year.

Moyer said the No. 1 factor determining student success is the quality of their classroom instructors, which is “very dependent on our ability to attract and retain good teachers.”

District administrators are currently working on budget options that will be presented to the School Board in April and May. The deadline for staff layoff notices is April 30.

In the district newsletter, Moyer characterized the challenge this way:

“The choice for BASD is simple. It either inflicts massive cuts on its public school system, or it raises taxes to offset the loss, or some combination of the above. These are the scenarios currently under consideration.”

Superintendent schedules several presentations

                  Burlington Area School District residents will have several chances to hear Superintendent David Moyer’s budget address during the coming month.

                  Moyer, who kicked off his informational tour this week with presentations before the Burlington Rotary Club Monday and for parents at Dyer Intermediate School Tuesday, has five more presentations scheduled, however not all are open to the general public (see below).

                  They are:

                  March 14 – Burlington High School auditorium, 6 p.m.

                 March 15 – Lyons Center School (for PTO members only), 6:30 p.m.

                  March 20 – Winkler School (for PTO members only), 6:30 p.m.

                  March 21 – Cooper School, 6:30 p.m.

                  March 26 – Burlington Lions Club at Cottonpicker Restaurant (for club members), 6 p.m.

                  April 3 – Waller School, 6:30 p.m.

            The meetings held at the schools are open to the public, but may also include other business conducted by the school’s PTO.