We are not out of the woods yet because we are still $15 billion in
the hole. You show me the money and I will keep quiet.
Do I see a lot of smiling faces at Sacramento? The people’s governor
did score a huge victory in the March elections. Propositions 55,
57 and 58 passed; so did proposition 56, albeit with a narrow margin.
Close call, but who cares; what matters is that the patient survived.
Did the governor get lucky? Did we get lucky? Are our budgets safe?
“A little government and a little luck are necessary in life, but
only a fool trusts either of them,”once said P.J. O’Rour-ke. Did I
hear you say, “you pessimist?” Patience, my friends! We are not out
of the woods yet, because we are still $15 billion in the hole. You
show me the money, and I will keep quiet.
To quote the famous philosopher Bret Harte (1836 - 1902), “The only
sure thing about luck is that it will change.” Prudence will dictate
that we keep a close watch on the governor’s May revision. Caution!
You are about to enter the $15 billion deficit zone.
Okay, let’s get into the details of our second interim reports and
where we stand. Second Interim for both school districts showed that
we are deficit spending this year and the next two years. This is
what is called “managed deficit spending,” be-cause any business manager
worth his or her salt would rather present a zero based budget (meaning
we spend what we receive with a decent reserve for those rainy days).
Let me try to explain managed deficit spending. One of the reasons
we are deficit spending is because there are certain areas which encroach
into the General Fund. Trans-portation, for example, is a huge encroachment
because the state does not reimburse in full what we spend on transportation.
But remember, we need busses because without busses we cannot transport
students to school; and if you do not transport them, and if the student
does not show up due to lack of transportation, then we cannot claim
their attendance; and if we cannot claim attendance, then our revenue
is down and we are deficit spending. If you are confused, I suggest
you read Joseph Heller’s Catch 22.
Another area is Special Education. By law, we are required to provide
those students who are challenged in certain areas with a special
education curriculum. CDE (California Department of Education) through
SELPA (Special Education Local Planning Area) oversees the disbursements
of such funds to school districts to run their special education program.
State budget cuts have impacted this area as much as other areas.
Those are just two examples. When I say “managed deficit spending,”
I carefully consider the pros and cons. I look at the cost and benefit
ratios. The end game has always got to be: “More Revenue, Careful
Spending and Quality Education.”
I assure you that your business office is doing a good job managing
the districts’ fi-nances because, unlike other school districts, we
have not shut educational programs, not resized our organization and
we continue to deliver the best quality education in the county.
By the way, did you look at the construction that is going on? Isn’t
it awesome? The staff and students are going to be blessed pretty
soon with the most beautiful campus, and that will be one more thing
we can boast about. Please stay tuned.
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