“I am so encouraged by the positive sign from the Board of Supervisors,” Hatrick said, referencing the 5 percent increase and zero based budget scenarios they requested. Twice Hatrick quoted Board of Supervisors Vice Chairman Susan Klimek Buckley’s (D- Sugarland Run) remarks in his request for increased local funding. Buckley and Board of Supervisors Chairman Scott York (I-At large) were both in the audience for Hatrick’s Jan. 12 presentation.
“Vice Chairman Buckley summed it up best,” Hatrick said. “Simply put, this community must make a choice. Are we going to invest in education to make Loudoun a first rate school system? You can’t talk about economic development, the budget or a quality community without talking about the quality of Loudoun County Public Schools…..Is it our highest priority, as the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors decided recently.”
“I certainly hope it’s first,” Hatrick said.
When all is said and done, Hatrick’s budget, if approved, would need $32.1 million in new funding—whatever the source.
Freeze of State Funding Could Cost LCPS $34 million this year
Hatrick predicated his budget on a 5 percent increase in local funding, but acknowledged that action in this year’s General Assembly and decisions on the state funding formula for education—the Local Composite Index (LCI)—could relieve Loudoun of the need to provide more money for schools. Given the uncertainty of LCI funding, Hatrick’s budget does not include the new LCI formula, which prescribes an additional $34 million for Loudoun schools.
In his attempt to balance the Virginia budget, former Virginia Governor Tim Kaine (D) proposed a freeze to the new funding formula, which would deny Loudoun, Fairfax and Prince William counties almost $120 million in additional state funding as well as negatively impact funding for some 40 other school divisions in the state. Virginia Governor Robert Mc Donnell (R), who took office Saturday, has yet to make public his position on whether to endorse or lift the Kaine freeze.
Theoretically, the LCI reflects localities’ ability to pay for public education and balances that ability against the need for state funding. The funding formula includes an examination of each Virginia jurisdiction’s real property assessments, personal incomes and retail sales with each jurisdiction assigned an aggregated wealth number, which is then divided by the number of school age children. This becomes the locality’s ability to fund education. The higher the jurisdiction’s quotient, the lower the quotient the state provides. For years, Loudoun, Fairfax and other counties in Northern Virginia have received little in return for the monies sent to Richmond. Last year, the state funded $178 million of Loudoun’s $732.6 million budget and $416 million of Fairfax County’s $2.2 billion school budget.
This year things were looking up, as the Loudoun and Fairfax LCI numbers were going down given increased student enrollment and the general economic decline and fall in area home values. Under the new formula, Loudoun should receive an additional $34 million in state aid to education, Prince William an additional $22 million and Fairfax would receive almost $60 million in additional state aid for education.
Speaking earlier of the LCI, and the possible freeze, Hatrick said, “The local composite index is either something we believe in -- and we do -- or we don't. By delaying it, we call into question the whole way funds are distributed.”
Two days after Hatrick’s presentation, the Joint School Board/Board of Supervisors Committee adopted a Joint Resolution opposing the LCI freeze and citing its negative impact on state aid for education in Loudoun. Hatrick explained that the freeze would negatively impact funding to more than “50 percent of the students” in the state—in school districts ranging “from the smallest to the largest, the richest to poorest,” and from northern to southern Virginia. At the Jan. 14 Joint Committee meeting, county staff explained as did Hatrick that Kaine’s proposed freeze purports to save the state almost $30 million.
If the premise is all about the money that would be allocated to schools for education, members discussed and questioned why and how a “distribution formula” could save the state any money. John Wood, chairman and CEO of Telos Corp., chairman of the Loudoun CEO Cabinet and member of the Joint School Board/Board of Supervisors Committee, spoke in favor of the Joint Committee resolution and advised that Loudoun businesses, the Chamber and the CEO Cabinet would actively “support the resolution.” The joint resolution passed unanimously 7-0.
Supervisor Jim Burton (I- Blue Ridge) asked that Loudoun seek a “formal explanation” from the state as to how money can be saved by simply changing the formula. Burton was advised that the item is slated for consideration at the next Board of Supervisors meeting and an explanation was being sought from the Virginia Department of Education.
LCPS Budget Totals and Local Funding for FY 2010 and FY 2011
FY 2010; FY 2011
Total Budget - $732.6 Million; Total Budget - $764.7 Million
Local Funding $502.6 Million; Local Funding $527.7 Million
What Are We Trying to Accomplish?
Hatrick’s FY 2011 budget of $764.7 million represents a 4.4 percent increase from this year’s appropriated budget of $732.6 million. He noted that the increase added “deals with a 5.4 percent increase in the number of students, and represents a decrease in the cost per pupil from $11,997 down to $11,683.” The proposed $25.1 million increase in local funding translates to $527.7 million in FY 2011—almost 70 percent of the county's requested funding—up from $502.6 million in FY2010. Local tax dollars have long represented the bulk of school funding in Loudoun, as well as Fairfax County and many other Virginia school districts.
Hatrick began his budget presentation by addressing the upcoming 2010-2011 school year by asking, “What are we trying to accomplish?” Hatrick identified enrollment growth, three new schools and preparations for a new middle school the following year as the “major budget drivers,” in his proposed operating budget. Next September, LCPS will open three new schools—two high schools and an elementary school—to accommodate an estimated 3,257 additional students, for a total enrollment of about 63,300 students. More students translates into more school seats and more staff. Which is largely why Hatrick’s budget seeks $25.1 million more in local funding from last year.
Hatrick said that although the budget he proposed is “far from the budget I would like to present, it is one that focuses on our students, does not diminish or destroy programs and sustains us in difficult economic times.”
While asking for additional local funding, Hatrick’s proposed budget also recognizes state funding is anticipated to increase slightly from $178 million to $179,076,377, or 23.4 percent of the total LCPS operating budget. Federal funding is expected to remain unchanged at 1.7 percent (or $13.2 million), while federal stimulus dollars are expected to decline by $7.7 million down from last year’s infusion of $11.8 million, but carryover funds of $6.6 million are expected in FY 2011, which represents Individuals qualifying under the federal Disabilities Education Act program, which will help offset the decline.
Totaling $476.2 million, salaries or personnel cost represent the bulk of Hatrick’s operating budget. While offering no new initiatives or program enhancements, Hatrick’s budget includes a 1 percent raise, a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for all LCPS employees at a cost of $5.5 million. Hatrick was asked after the budget presentation if he knew whether Hemstreet was also including a raise for general government employees in his proposed FY 2011 budget. Hatrick said he had no knowledge of any aspects of the yet to be presented county budget.
Continued growth in the number of students enrolled in LCPS translates to an increase in the number of LCPS employees. Hatrick’s budget balances the need for additional staff by offering some staff reductions. The budget reduces school based staff by 36.8 positions ($2.6 million) and reduces central office staff by seven positions ($.5 million).
The largest cost savings, $7.4 million, originates from Hatrick’s proposal to increase class size by one student at all grade levels. The increased class size translates to hiring 100 fewer teachers. Hatrick explained that “92 percent of all school districts in Virginia are proposing increases in class size.”
Hatrick also proposed elimination of 31.3 special education content teacher positions as other special education teachers have received training and are now identified as “highly qualified” to assume those positions; while “revised staffing” results in removal of another 5.5 positions in gifted education and library/media services programs. Even so, LCPS anticipates it will hire an additional 189 new school based employees – 94 of them for the three new schools. The remainder includes teachers, teacher assistants, counselors, bus drivers will be added to the LCPS system. In FY 2010, LCPS workforce totaled 8,900 full time employees and 3,500 part time employees; 71 percent who live in Loudoun, according to the budget presentation documents.
The Other Side of the Coin
“We can’t do more with less, year after year,” Hatrick said regarding “The other side of the coin,” or no new local funding, adding “...we couldn’t invent anything new,” the school system is looking at “Tiers 2 and 3 (list of budget reductions) from last year.”
Hatrick provided copies of a list of recommended reductions to comply with Loudoun supervisors request for a zero based budget, representing no new funding, but spent little time addressing the specifics. The numbers are the same, the Option #1 Reduction List totals $25.1 million—or the requested increase.
Should LCPS receive no additional local funding for FY 2011, a review of the Reduction List includes these cost savings measures: elimination and/or reduction of almost 300 full time positions, including 20 middle school deans ($1.5 million), four high school deans ($288,000), 12 assistant athletic directors ($840,000), 12.5 career center assistants ($580,000), 27 reading specialists ($1.9 million), 87 technology assistants ($2.1 million), 14 technology resource teachers ($900,000), 13.6 guidance counselors ($980,000), 26 grades 1-5 teacher assistants ($800,000), five high school testing coordinators ($325,000), nine elementary administrative interns ($600,000), 12 high school SAT teachers ($780,000) and two small school principals ($240,000) by providing half-time principals to Aldie/Middleburg and Lincoln/Hillsboro elementary schools, among others.
The Reduction List also included furloughs for all employees. Two days of furloughs would save LCPS $2.37 million. Reduction in the Foreign Language Elementary School (FLES) program nets a cost savings of $1.2 million, while providing grades 3-5 one 30 minute period of instruction a week. Athletic fees per sport could increase from $100 to $200 per sport per participant and achieve $385,000, and if increased to $300 per student per sport an additional $385,000 would be achieved. Elimination of Summer School would provide cost savings of $2.9 million but would be offset by the loss of $615,000 in summer school tuition revenue.
Visit the LCPS Web site www.loudoun.k12.va.us for more information on the Proposed FY 2011 Operating Budget. The School Board will hold a second public hearing followed by a board work session on the budget Tuesday, Jan. 19, at 6:30 p.m. in the School Board Meeting room, LCPS Administrative Building, 21000 Education Court in Ashburn. A School Board public work session on the FY 2011 Operating Budget is also scheduled Thursday, Jan. 21, at 6:30 p.m., with adoption of the FY 2011 budget slated for Tuesday, Jan. 26.
The school board adopted budget will then be forwarded to the Board of Supervisors for review and examination. The Board of Supervisors has also scheduled public hearings on the county budget, which includes the school system budget, for Feb.24- 25 at 3:30 and 6:30 p.m. in the County Government Center, 1 Harrison Street in Leesburg, and again on Saturday, Feb. 27, at 9:30 a.m. in the LCPS Administrative Building, 21000 Education Court in Ashburn.
Who believes Hatrick has done all he can do to rid the school system of wasteful spending? Not me. Reduce the school budget to under $700 million and next year we'll talk about not being able to do more with less.