Community Provides Feedback on Proposed School Budget

The Scarsdale School Board received feedback from the community on the 2010-11 School Budget at the April 8th Budget Forum. Representatives from The Scarsdale Forum Education (Fiscal) Committee, the League of Women Voters of Scarsdale and the PT Council presented statements.

While the League and the PT Council spoke in support of the Board and the budget, the Scarsdale Forum statement was more critical. On behalf of the committee, John Bensche, outlined their reservations. It should be noted that this report was not approved by the entire membership of the Scarsdale Forum, and not even endorsed by the Forum’s own Educational Policy Committee. It did however received “Expeditious Treatment” from the executive committee of the Scarsdale Forum, which means that it was read, but necessarily endorsed by the leadership.

Here is a summary of their recommendations:

1. Reduce current year tax growth further by finding additional economies and using more from reserves.

2. Set a long-term goal of matching budget and tax growth to inflation, adjusted for changes in enrollment.

3. Take steps to further reduce the rate of growth in total compensation.

4. Prepare and publish a rolling five-year forecast for capital expenditures and a minimum of two years for operating budgets.

5. Because changes to union contracts have the potential to be such a significant driver of future expenditures, civic groups should have the opportunity to review and comment on contracts changes before they are approved by the Board.

The Committee has significant reservations about the budget. They fall into three main areas:

1. The budget is based on several fundamental policies and proposals that also impact future budgets, but is not presented in the context of its impact on future budget years. As a result we do not believe there is enough information to analyze the extent to which the current budget decisions may require future expense increases. Examples of multi-year decisions and proposals include:

• Use of reserves
• Order and timing of facilities projects
• Multi-year contract extension with teachers and multi-year no layoff clause
• Multi-year contract with bus drivers with multi-year no outsourcing clause
• Changes to teacher workloads or class sizes
• Changes in teacher headcount funded by Federal Stimulus money that may extend beyond the expiration of that funding

2. The Committee believes the rate of increase in employee compensation should be reduced at the earliest opportunity. Over many years and as a result of long-standing policies, Scarsdale has built up a structure of guaranteed payment increases (“steps”, “lanes”, COLAs) to employees, which has resulted in the most generous salaries in the State, according to the New York State Department of Education. We believe that this rate of increase reduces the financial flexibility of the District to react to changing economic circumstances and puts upward pressure on the budget every year. We will be submitting a future comprehensive report dedicated to analyzing this issue in depth, and making longer-term recommendations.

3. We recognize the Scarsdale Teachers Association (“STA”) voluntarily reopened its contract with the District. We are also aware that the District gave significant concessions to the STA in exchange for its agreement to reduce previously contracted compensation increases. While the cover letter on the budget says that the STA “unilaterally contributed” some of its across-the-board raise in an act of shared sacrifice, we view it as a trade, not a unilateral contribution. And a trade that puts off contract negotiations for an additional year, thereby delaying a full engagement with the STA on adjusting the rate of growth in compensation in a more meaningful fashion. We believe the District may have given up too much to get this agreement.

The full report can be viewed here: http://www.scarsdaleforum.com/reportsHome.php?parent=39

Following Bensche’s statement, Board President Barbara Kemp reminded him that he applauded when the STA announced their decision to accept wage concessions for the coming years. She was disappointed that the Fiscal Committee did not praise the teacher’s for re-opening their contract. She thanked the Fiscal Committee for their hard work and analysis and promised that their suggestions were already under consideration. School Board member Jeff Blatt asked why The Scarsdale Forum divorces discussions of education policy from educational funding, and noted that the two go hand in hand.

Both the League of Women Voters and the PT Council spoke in support of the budget, the Board and the process.

Ann Sacher, speaking for the LWV credited the Board. “Given the current, challenging economic conditions, the League recognizes the difficulty in designing a school budget that retains core educational values while minimizing tax increases. The League appreciates the effort that the Administration and Board put into making information available and reaching out to the community for its input.”

The League commended the Board on negotiations with teachers but since they will have less flexibility on staffing, they recommended caution when “making new non-tenured staffing commitments.” They supported the 4% budget reserve due to uncertainty about state financing and tax receipts and urged the Board to support a village-wide tax revaluation. The League also supported the formation of a committee to seek additional revenue sources, funding for the Teen Center and the evaluation of the foreign language program. The full text of their letter appears below.

Elizabeth Gruber of the PT Council Executive Committee, praised Scarsdale teachers for opening their contract and which helped to preserve class sizes, jobs and programs. To those who called for no tax increase, the PT Council said, “the educational cuts that would have to be made to bring about a 0% increase could directly compromise the integrity of a Scarsdale education both now and in the long term. We would be forced to deal with dramatic cuts in curriculum, extra curricular activities and staffing.” See the full statement below.

The budget vote and election for School Board candidates will be held on Tuesday May 18th from 7:00 am to 9:00 pm at the Scarsdale Middle School and everyone is encouraged to vote.

LWVS Comments on the proposed 2010-11 Scarsdale School Budget

The League of Women Voters of Scarsdale appreciates the opportunity to comment on the proposed 2010-2011 Scarsdale school budget. The League offers sincere thanks to the Administration and members of the Board of Education for participating in our consensus meeting on March 22, 2010 and for responding to our extensive list of questions. Given the current, challenging economic conditions, the League recognizes the difficulty in designing a school budget that retains core educational values while minimizing tax increases. The League appreciates the effort that the Administration and Board put into making information available and reaching out to the community for its input. The League supports the budget presented on March 1, 2010 and encourages the Board to continue to explore creative solutions to control costs, raise revenue and study productivity. The League awaits the District’s decisions on managing the tax rate increase given the additional $400,000 tax revenue deficit.

The League acknowledges and commends the Board and Administration on its historic teacher contract negotiation, which saves the District $1.9 million over two years. As a result of this agreement, important programs and services will be maintained at their current levels enabling Scarsdale to maintain its core educational values. We note that by extending the contract for one additional year, the district has limited its ability to negotiate other aspects of the agreement that may have generated future savings and concessions greater than those agreed to in this contract revision. Among the concerns are salary levels and cost-sharing of benefits that will be frozen for an additional year, and the inability to lay off teachers except in situations where there is a decrease in student enrollment, which could affect the process by which some programming can be evaluated. The League suggests that because of these constraints, the Board and Administration should take extra care when making new non-tenured staffing commitments.

The League recognizes the need for keeping a 4% budget reserve level and is in favor of doing so in light of the potential for either unanticipated expenses or decreased revenue that might occur next year, particularly due to the uncertainty of future tax certiorari grievances and receipt of state aid. The League has a strong view on tax reassessment, and wishes to reaffirm the need for a countywide and village-wide revaluation/reassessment. We hope that the Board vigorously supports a village plan for revaluation/reassessment within Scarsdale.

The League encourages the Village and School District to continue to look for creative ways to partner to decrease the overall taxpayer burden. The League appreciates the ongoing cost-sharing programs, including facilities and transportation for the summer day camp program, sanitation and fields for recreational activities. We recommend continued evaluation of cost-sharing opportunities, particularly in the areas of health and safety.

The Board has announced that it will be forming an advisory committee, made up of a cross-constituency group, to consider the feasibility of additional sources of revenue. The League commends the Board for taking the initiative to explore different sources of revenue and for doing so in an inclusive manner.

The League acknowledges the thorough process that the Board and Administration have undertaken to evaluate the funding levels for the Youth Services Project and the Teen Center. We look forward to the upcoming analysis being done by the Board on the best method of delivering social support services in the District. The League encourages the Board to continue to find a level at which to support the Teen Center. Though educational programming is the Board’s priority and should not be jeopardized, the Board should continue to acknowledge the Teen Center’s value to the community.

The League encourages the Board and Administration to continue the process of evaluating the Foreign Language Elementary Schools (“FLES”) program, and looks forward to learning the outcome of the assessment. The League understands the rationale for deferring the funding for a Mandarin language program and for reconsidering this initiative when economic conditions improve.

The League has learned that after the Preliminary Proposed Budget was drafted, a $400,000 reduction in tax revenues was reported due to settled tax grievances. Without further budget adjustments, this revenue reduction will result in a higher tax rate than originally proposed. The League’s statement on the proposed budget is based on the information available at the time of the March 22, 2010 meeting. The League may comment on further budget changes as they become available.

In conclusion, we thank the members of the Board of Education, Dr. Michael McGill and the entire Administration for the help that they have given to the League of Women Voters this year in its study of the proposed school budget. The Administration and Board’s willingness to listen to community input has made this year’s budget process a very inclusive endeavor. We look forward to the continuation of an open budget process again next year.

The League recommends that the community vote “yes” on the proposed 2010-2011 Scarsdale school budget on May 18th, 2010.

Angela Manson, Barbara Cohen and Ann Sacher
League of Women Voters School Budget Committee Co-Chairs
Jane Veron, President, League of Women Voters of Scarsdale

Scarsdale PT Council – 2010-11 Budget Statement

The Scarsdale PT Council Executive Committee applauds the efforts of the Board of Education and the District to maintain a high quality of education and a low tax rate increase.

We are extremely grateful to the teachers union for opening their contract to negotiate a lower salary increase saving $1.9 million over the next two years. This action preserves elementary school class size, jobs and programs. We fully support the preliminary proposed budget for 2010-2011 and encourage the community to get out and vote on May 18.

There are those in the community who are demanding a 0% tax increase. We feel that the educational program cuts that would have to be made to bring about a 0% increase could directly compromise the integrity of a Scarsdale education both now and in the long term. We would be forced to deal with dramatic cuts in curriculum, extra-curriculars, and staffing.
Given the uncertain future of our economy we support the board’s efforts to balance maintaining a low tax increase with maintaining adequate reserves. We know the board will continue to look for savings through efficiencies in energy, scheduling, staffing hours and building maintenance.

The School Board members, all volunteers, should be commended for their attention to detail in analyzing the school budget. The District Administration has done a very thorough job explaining their challenges and recommendations for this year’s budget. We thank you for your efforts to involve the community in this process.