By Christy Scott
The Alpine Sun
     While local school districts are struggling to finalize budgets as fairly as possible, the California state budget continues to prompt worries about the possibility of draconian cuts. With the state facing a year-end budget deficit of $6.7 billion in fiscal year 2005-06 lawmakers are trying to find solutions to the state's financial problems.
     In early January, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger unveiled a $111.7-billion state budget proposal that cuts several prominent programs, including health care and transportation. The most controversial cut is the governor's plan to scale back payment increases to the school system by $2.5 billion. The education “cut” has angered school groups who agreed to a cut last year in exchange for a promise that there would be no futher reductions.
     "I don’t think anyone is happy with what they heard," said Mtn. Empire Unified School District 

business manager Max Robinson regarding the governor’s budget. "I’m predicting a loss of $18,000 for Mtn. Empire from federal funding sources."
     The Alpine Union School District is having its own struggles with funding. "This year we anticipate revenues of $15.9 million, but expenditures of $16.5 million," reads the AUSD website. "We are spending more than we take in."
     The District does maintain a reserve fund to help during difficult periods, however AUSD business manager Rob Turner projects that those reserves will be depleted in the near future.
The district is constantly looking for areas where cuts can be made and savings earned without jeopardizing the level of education at local schools.
     "Unfortunately 85 percent of a school district’s expenditures are for employee salaries and benefits," states the website, "this makes it very difficult to make adjustments to the budget."
Adjustment and finalization of local district budgets is not an exact science, according to AUSD Superintendent Greg Ryan.
     "We have to move ahead with a budget that is based on guesses," said Ryan, "because we don’t know the final numbers. School district budgets are adopted before the state budget is finalized and thus are based on preliminary numbers and dollar amounts.
     Education makes up nearly 40 percent of the state budget, and is currently protected from cuts by the state Constitution under voter-passed Proposition 98. Prop. 98 or the "Classroom Instructional Improvement and Accountability Act," approved by voters in 1988, offered a measure of security to K-12 schools by guaranteeing a minimum amount of support for public education. 
     The voter-approved amendment to California's Constitution has protected K–12 education from cuts that have struck some of the other services supported through the state's budget. Prop. 98 also ensures that schools enjoy a large share of any increase in state revenues. Suspending the provisions of the proposition requires a two-thirds vote of the legislature and agreement by the governor.
     His plan holds Proposition 98 funding to the same amount detailed in the 2004-05 budget. The plan would not reimburse education funding that was suspended during the last budget. Withholding the 04-05 funding along with the lower funding level this year will save the state approximately $2.2 billion over 2005-06.
     This educational funding squeeze comes at a time when both the state and federal government are emphasizing the need to improve the achievement of all students and to increase student and school accountability.
     Since 1978 and the passing of Prop. 13, the decision about how much money school districts will receive, and where it will come from, has largely been made by the governor and Legislature. It’s up to local school boards to decide how best to use the resources they receive to educate their school population. 
     In MEUSD, officials are trying to figure out how to balance their own tight budget. At the Feb. 16 board meeting, members discussed several options for cutting costs and saving money. Robinson floated the idea of bringing in a consultant to look at spending and see where some money might be saved. 
     Other ideas include modifying and combining certain programs and possible elimination of staff positions. Prior to the meeting, Superintendent Patrick Judd spoke to officials at all the school sites and asked them to submit possible reductions and cuts that could be undertaken if need be.
     "Any time you cut personnel, you’re going to lose services," said Judd. "The money’s not there and we just don’t have the luxury of some of these positions."
     MEUSD’s interim budget will be up for approval at the next school board meeting on Mar. 16 at Jacumba Elementary.

California school funding sources
     Funds from the federal government make up about 13 percent of the K-12 education budget. 
About 53 percent of the total comes from the state’s budget: business, corporate and personal income taxes, sales taxes, and some special taxes. 
     Local property taxes are about 27 percent, an amount that is determined within the state’s budget. 
     Miscellaneous local revenues, about six percent of the total, include such items as fees on commercial or residential construction; special elections for parcel taxes; contributions from parents, businesses and foundations; cafeteria sales; and interest on investments by local school districts.
The smallest amount at the bottom is the California Lottery, which provides slightly more than 1 percent of the total, or about $125 per student annually. 
     These proportions, which are from the 2003-04 budget, vary slightly one year to the next. Public schools have no other revenue sources.
     About two-thirds of total funding is for general purposes, with the other third for special purposes or categories of students. Each district’s income is based on three factors: the average number of students attending school during the year (average daily attendance, or ADA), general purpose money the district receives based on ADA, and special support (categorical aid) from the state and federal governments, earmarked for particular purposes.
     Schwarzenegger's school reform proposals came as a shock in Sacramento where the education lobby had depended upon the governor's promise not to cut funding in 2005. Under the deal struck with Schwarzenegger, schools were to get $2.2 billion in 2005-06 and a promise of no further drain on education funding. Under the governor's reform proposals, a third of the increase would be eliminated.
     Proponents of the Schwarzenegger agenda say that the governor is actually increasing the amount spent on education, with a boost in state funding from the 2004 average of $7,012 per student to $7,374 per student. Along with federal, local and other funds, funding in California will actually stand at over $10,000 per student for the first time in state history.
     However, as the Governor is learning, the failure to meet what the school groups regard as their full share of Proposition 98 funding will be denounced as a “cut” even if spending on schools increases. Education activists also raise the point that costs are rising so rapidly that the additional funding will have little impact.

     Information for this story was gathered from the California Department of Education, the California Governor’s Office and the California School Boards Association.

                                            E-mail Christy Scott