Monrovia Schools Could Take Another Financial Hit

The likelihood of state cuts to K-12 education is "quite real," according to an analysis by David Conway, Monrovia Schools' Director of Fiscal Services.
In his preamble to a proposed revised budget ( http://goo.gl/wRhlP ) that the school board will consider at its August 31 meeting, Conway slammed the state and warned of possible cuts to come. Here's some of his analysis:
"As has become standard practice in recent years, the State Budget is balanced using some accounting gimmicks, funding shifts and an increase in the deferral of state apportionments into the next fiscal year. Even more troublesome, this budget assumes an additional $4 billion dollar increase in State revenue above the already optimistic assumptions used in the May Revised budget.
"To reassure financial markets and others that this budget was in fact balanced despite its rosy revenue assumptions and projections, the legislature included a 'trigger' that will be implemented after December 15th if revenue collections do not meet the projections at that time.
"Should these revenues not be realized, mid-year cuts - including cuts to K-12 education - will be implemented, unless subsequent legislation offering a different solution is passed by the legislature and signed by the Governor. July State tax collections were well under projection. The probability of mid-year and/or out-year cuts to K-12 education funding is quite real."
- Brad Haugaard

No comments:

Post a Comment