According to the figures in last year’s CCFT/CCUSD bargaining agreement, certificated salaries in 2011-12 were $24.84M. This year they will be around $26.13M, an increase of $1.29M. That is a pretty good annual increase without even having to negotiate a raise.
Don’t Count Your Chickens Just Yet
The Los Angeles County Office of Education already has warned districts not to expect an increase in state funding anytime soon. They explain that similar to local property taxes, districts’ state aid will be reduced by one dollar for each dollar received from Prop. 30’s Education Protection Account. The proposition funding actually should be thought of as only a third revenue limit source, like local property taxes and state aid.
Flat Funding
Even with Prop. 30's implied campaign promises of additional school funding, locally, the bottom line is there will be no increase in funding from the state for our District this year or in the near future. Yet the CCFT still wants the School Board to commit the District to a five-year plan of salary increases. This, even as the District continues to deficit spend to meet its other ongoing obligations.
If there is not going to be additional state funding, where is the money coming from to continue to pay these five years of continuous salary increases? The Reserve Fund?
How Big Is Too Big?
California school districts with Average Daily Attendance (ADA) between 5K and 10K students, on-average allocate slightly less than 40 percent of their budgets for teacher salaries. The CCUSD, with fewer than 6500 ADA, fits in the lower half of that category. Yet it allocates closer to 50 percent of its budget for teacher salaries. Is this too much? Is half of the budgetary pie too big a piece for one group?
Once Spent, It Is Gone
One of the first fiscal precepts School Board members learn about District finances is not to spend onetime money for on-going expenditures.
One question our current Board members will need to keep in mind while negotiating: Will current reserve funds be used to pay for the CCFT’s five-year plan of on-going salary raises?
Because with their understanding that our District will be not receiving additional funding from the state and with the District still deficit spending into the near future, the most common sense answer from Board members to the CCFT proposal should be an obvious and emphatic No.
Why?
Because District Reserve Funds are one-time funds made up of past onetime savings. Once those funds are spent, they are gone.
Mr. Laase may be contacted at GMLaase@aol.com
