School Budget Hearings

September 2013 Alabama School Connection

Why bother? “Trust, but verify”

Monetary decisions impact our children’s

daily lives in our schools

State Federal Local

Three Pots of $$$

State Revenue

State Foundation Program Grant Programs

Earmarked Contributions

Handouts 1 - “State Department of Education FY2014 LEA Unit Breakdown – Hoover City” 2 – “State Department of Education – FY2014 Foundation Program”

Federal Revenue

Title Programs Child Nutrition Program

Special Education

Local Revenue

Property Taxes Sales Taxes

Government Appropriations Investment Revenue

Contributions

Handouts

3 – “State of Alabama Department of Education LEA Budget System – FY13 Hoover City Schools” 4 – “Hoover City Schools – Enrollment as of August 31, 2012” 5 – Trace Crossings Unit Breakdown FY13 6 – Trace Crossings Expenditure Breakdown FY13

Expenditures Instructional

Services

Instructional Support Services

General Administrative

Capital Outlay

Debt Service

Operations and

Maintenance

Auxiliary Services

Other

Funds

General Fund Special

Revenue Fund

Debt Service Fund

Capital Fund

Fiduciary Fund/

Proprietary Fund

Cost Centers

By School By Function

Find these on Budget documents

Know Your Cost Center

“The Budget is a Planning Tool”

Funds Expenditures Revenue

Budgets delineate PRIORITIES

Things to Note in a Budget

• Beginning and ending balances of funds • Projected Deficits • General Fund Balance • Capital outlays • Transfers • Uneven or questionable distributions

among schools

What the Budget Doesn’t Show…

Is state, federal, or local money being used?

Why is money being transferred

among accounts?

State Foundation Program

• 2012-2013 Guide to State Allocations • Last year’s Average Daily Membership

(ADM) – average of 20 days after Labor Day

• Student Materials - $300/unit • Local Money fills in the gaps

State ETF Budget FY14

Source: Legislative Fiscal Office FY14 spreadsheet

K-12 $ 4 BILLION Higher Ed $ 1.4 BILLION Other $ 310 million TOTAL $ 5.8 BILLION

State Salary Schedule

Salaries are allotted based on the State Salary Schedule

Many systems have a higher salary schedule per teacher

Local Money fills in the gaps

Handouts

7 – “Certified FTE by Funding Source” – FY13

8 – “Support FTE by Funding Source” – FY13

9 – Long Term Debt – FY12 Audit

Local Money

All the fun stuff! Technology

Smaller class sizes Athletics

Questions to Ask

• What does this budget tell us about your priorities as a board/school district?

• How “real” are these numbers? • What percentage do you spend on core

instruction? • How will this budget improve student

achievement, specifically?