Tonight the Albemarle County School Board will hear more in-depth information from staff on budget issues including whether to present a balanced budget to the Board of Supervisors, staff development, student and teacher workloads and having new hires pay in to the Virginia Retirement Service.
The first hurdle the board has to jump is what Chairman Steve Koleszar called a “philosophical” decision on whether to present the Board of Supervisors with an unbalanced funding request, of $151.7 million, which would show a projected $4.9 million gap between revenue and spending, or a request balanced to Superintendent Pam Moran’s estimate that the schools will receive $146.8 million in revenue next year.
Moran’s budget request, presented last week to the board, shows $151.7 million in projected spending next year. Moran told the board that her funding request is based around covering the schools’ core responsibilities and there is little fat to cut.
“I brought forth a funding request that covers our core needs,” she said. “Quite frankly, I need to be straight-up, there are no expenses that we have created … The things that are on the table are not new or groundbreaking initiatives.”
Board member Jason Buyaki asked the board to look into asking new hires to contribute to the Virginia Retirement Service. Current teachers are not responsible for contributions to the service. County schools’ obligation to the retirement service will increase by more than $4 million next fiscal year.
Having new hires contribute could help alleviate some of that burden, Buyaki said.
Board members Eric Strucko and Diantha McKeel expressed some concern that Moran’s request, included moving nearly $1 million for school bus replacement from the schools’ operational budget to the county’s capital improvement plan.
Though the boards have discussed the move, there is no guarantee that the supervisors will approve it.
“The Board of Supervisors have not indicated to us in any way, shape or form that they have any interest in funding that yet,” McKeel said.
School officials reminded the board that there had been some interest in the transfer from the supervisors, but Strucko warned that removing the money with no guarantee could be dangerous.
“Is this deficit going to be $4.9 million or $5.9 million? That’s a million dollars that’s not in this budget,” he said.
The board will hold another budget work session on Tuesday, followed by a public hearing Feb. 2. The board should adopt its final budget Feb. 9. There is a tentative work session scheduled for Feb. 11 if the board needs more time to finalize the budget.
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