Truth about Florida Public School funding

[wrobert]

Unions do not care. Empty seat funding is fine with them.



From Sen. Gaetz:

For three of the five counties I represent, the single biggest cause of district budget reductions in recent years has not been cuts at the state level. The reason for less dollars is fewer students attending public schools in those counties.

Taxpayers can?t be expected to provide funding for empty desks, though districts have struggled to reduce overhead proportionate to having fewer students.

? In Bay County, there are 1,930 fewer students than in 2006. At $6,712 per student, enrollment loss has cost Bay schools $12,954,160 over four years.

? Escambia schools have lost 3,339 students since 2006. This one variable has resulted in a loss of $21,960,603 at $6,577 per student.

? Okaloosa has 1,674 fewer students than in 2006. At $6,657 per pupil, the district is $11,143,818 poorer due solely to declining enrollment.

Other than an unprecedented projected loss of 323 students for 2010, Santa Rosa has had steady enrollment in recent years as has Walton County.

 

[Bob Wells]

Now Robert, as Ronald would say, There you go again.

 

[Bob Wells]

Robert
Just read the whole letter from Sen Gaetz, had not your favorite Governor not accepted the Stimulus money and the public had not gone and lobbied for the educations budget protection, I am sure Senator Gaetz would have been writing a letter about how he had cut wasteful spending from the State Budget. Had the federal government not given Florida the Wavier for Stimulus money because of what Governor Crist and then House Speaker Rubio started by reducing school funding we would have been in a whole lot worse situation. I am suprised Senator Gaetz even put the word stimulus in his letter seeing how he opposed accepting the money as I remember. Sorry about not being able to show the letter, I attempted to put the letter here but it was much to long and would not allow it, Maybe Robert can figure it out when he has time.

 

[wrobert]

Robert
Just read the whole letter from Sen Gaetz, had not your favorite Governor not accepted the Stimulus money and the public had not gone and lobbied for the educations budget protection, I am sure Senator Gaetz would have been writing a letter about how he had cut wasteful spending from the State Budget. Had the federal government not given Florida the Wavier for Stimulus money because of what Governor Crist and then House Speaker Rubio started by reducing school funding we would have been in a whole lot worse situation. I am suprised Senator Gaetz even put the word stimulus in his letter seeing how he opposed accepting the money as I remember. Sorry about not being able to show the letter, I attempted to put the letter here but it was much to long and would not allow it, Maybe Robert can figure it out when he has time.

I was surprised also that he mentioned the stimulus money. I wonder how much total spending on education has dropped. If student enrollment is down that much across the State, we must really be saving some dollars. You would think with so many fewer students to teach, we would be able to maintain the dollar per student funding a whole lot easier.

As for the letter:

Please do not reply to this Email. It is being sent from an Out Going Mailbox Only.

To send Senator Don Gaetz an Email: http://www.gulf1.com/Elected/gaetz/Gaetzmail.htm
A report to educators, parents and taxpayers from Senator Don Gaetz


Dear Neighbor,

Our legislative session in Tallahassee just ended this past Friday and I wanted to report to you as soon as possible about an issue that concerns nearly every Northwest Floridian ? the future and funding of our public schools.

If you have children in school or if you?re a citizen paying taxes to support our schools, each of us has a stake in how and how much is spent ? and what results are achieved.

It means so much to me to receive emails, letters, phone calls and visits from students, parents, educators and taxpayers who care deeply about education. I read every message and used many of your comments and suggestions as I worked with my fellow senators. Thank you for your messages. You made a difference.

As a former superintendent and school board member in Okaloosa County, I know what it?s like to squeeze less-than-essential expenses in order to push a greater share of scarce resources to the classroom. I admire the five superintendents and five boards who operate the schools in Northwest Florida and I respect the tough decisions they make.

All of us are keenly aware of the deteriorated economy and all that it means to our families and our communities ? job losses, rising foreclosures, businesses struggling, money tightening, and a flat real estate market.

There are also implications for our state, as a whole. In fiscal year 2009-2010, for the second year in a row, the State of Florida will have $6 billion less in revenue than the year before. That two year drop of $12 billion in revenue is the worst budget reverse since the Great Depression.

When property values are declining and people and businesses aren?t buying and selling, there?s less revenue to support the state budget. A third of our budget is spent on education.


Dire predictions

Officials in local school districts braced for the worst as the legislative session began. One superintendent in our area said state funding would be slashed 15 % to 16 % in the 2010 budget with her district losing $31 million. Another told the media that state budget cuts would likely force him to lay off 260 teachers. A district finance director in another Northwest Florida county said he knew funding would be cut by $318 per student.

Newspapers carried dire stories that programs like International Baccalaureate, Advanced Placement, and National Board Certification would be eliminated by state action.

As a reminder, here are links to some of the predictions published before and during the legislative session:

Education cuts coming into focus, January 10, 2009 in the Panama City News Herald
School District chips away at budget, January 15, 2009 in the Gulf Breeze News
Gloomy forecast, March 5, 2009 in the Northwest Florida Daily News
School budget committee: Keep cuts from classrooms, March 12, 2009 in the Northwest Florida Daily News
No easy answers for Okaloosa schools, March 19, 2009 in the Northwest Florida Daily News
Teachers brace for post-break news: 272 instructors and administrators could get '09-10 lay-off notices, March 26, 2009 in the Gulf Breeze News
Hundreds of Okaloosa teachers get layoff notices, March 27, 2009 in the Northwest Florida Daily News
Senator: Bay schools stand to gain in new budget, March 27, 2009 in the Panama City News Herald
Legislators haggle over education spending, March 29, 2009 in the Northwest Florida Daily News
Santa Rosa cuts 121 support jobs; 260 teachers may be next, April 1, 2009 in the NorthEscambia.com
Educators battle the budget ax: Educators, students rally against school cuts, April 24, 2009 in the Pensacola News Journal

Bottom line: no deep cuts in K12

While a bad economy can?t result in a good budget, the fact is that the deep cuts described in those news stories didn?t happen. But the drill which some districts underwent did help folks understand how serious the problem could have been ? and might be again.

The Legislature combined state revenues, federal stimulus funds, unprecedented flexibility and local control with deeper reductions to non-education parts of the state budget in order to protect classroom instruction.

The bottom line ? state-wide K12 schools will receive from the Legislature about the same amount of operating funds next year as this year.

I wouldn?t go as far as some newspapers which have declared education a ?winner? in the state budget. In my view, this historically difficult year isn?t a time when anyone can claim to be a winner in the budget process. But now, at least, parents and teachers and school administrators can operate from facts, not speculation as we look to the year ahead.

Here are the facts, taken from pages 6 and 7 of the Final Conference Report, Senate Bill 2600, May 5, 2009, which is the fiscal year 2009-2010 Florida Education Finance Program:

Bay County will receive $167,931,419 through the state funding formula for 2010. This is an increase of $288,588 over the current year?s amount of $167,642,831. Per student funding will increase from $6,644.04 to $6,712.21. Bay projects a continued enrollment decline of 213 fewer students next year.

Escambia County will earn $6,577.03 per student in 2010, a slight increase over this year?s $6,575.88. But the district will have $6,569,828 less in income next year ($258,669,285 compared to $265,239,113) because of 1,008 fewer students. Escambia?s budget reduction is solely because of less enrollment, not because of state budget decisions.

Okaloosa County will lose less than one half of one percent in operating revenue, not the 15%-16% reductions mentioned in news stories and meetings. Okaloosa?s per student funding will be $6,656,79 or $21.17 less than the current year. Overall, the district will have $193,236,510 in operating funds for 2010. This year the district is spending $193,996,917.

Santa Rosa County schools will earn a small amount more per student ($6,476.38 compared to $6,478.60 next year) but will have less funding overall because of a projected loss of 323 students. Like Escambia and Bay, Santa Rosa?s year-to-year revenue decline is largely related to a drop in enrollment, unusual for Santa Rosa schools. For that reason, total operating funds will decline from $161,009,632 to $158,975,105 or a loss of 1.26%.

Walton County will gain $2,206,154 in year to year operating funds under the Legislature?s budget: $50,537,056 up from $48,330,902 in 2009. Per student funding will rise 4.45% from $6,970.73 to $7,281.04. Enrollment is not expected to grow. Alone among the counties in Senate District 4, Walton receives a ?small district supplement,? a feature of the state?s funding formula for many years.


Classroom instruction protected, More flexibility and local control

The final budget is far better (or at least not nearly as bad) news for K12 education than was feared. As a member of the Senate Education Committee, I?m deeply grateful to our chairman, Senator Nancy Detert (R-Sarasota) and the Education Appropriations Chairman, Senator Steve Wise (R-Jacksonville) and our partners in the House of Representatives for listening and responding to those of us who are advocates for public education.

The fact is that other areas of the state budget were cut deeper so that classroom instruction could be protected as much as possible. We also applied every dollar of federal stimulus money possible to education.

I was pleased to join with Senator Detert in sponsoring legislation which gives county school boards more local control and spending flexibility than ever before. I was also able to work with Senator Wise to restore most weighted funding for Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate.

At my urging and that of other like-minded senators, we maintained the Merit Award program, whereby thousands of Florida teachers are receiving up to ten percent performance bonuses based on locally-developed plans. The House and Senate budget conferees also accepted my recommendation to continue to support National Board Certification as a way to reward teachers who devote up to three years of rigorous self-improvement to enhance their instructional skills.


Tough decisions at local level

But even though there will be no deep cuts in next year?s education appropriations, the reality is that our local school boards and superintendents are still facing tough choices. Those governing our school systems have had to drain reserves and tighten belts to get through the 2008 and 2009 school years, when per student funding did decrease as the economy worsened. And while 2010 school funding is at relatively the same level as 2009, the costs of energy, insurance and other items will continue to rise.

At the request of school boards, superintendents, parents and teachers in Northwest Florida, I worked to make a portion of previously restricted capital funds available for operating purposes. This flexibility reduces the dollars available for construction in favor of maintaining classroom instruction. With declining or flat enrollment in all the counties in my Senate district, I agreed with the input I received from home that keeping teachers in existing classrooms is more important now than building more classrooms for fewer students.

This year the Legislature also provided additional local funding authority to school boards. By a super majority, Boards can increase taxes by one-fourth mill so long as the increase is approved by voters at the next election. The only reason I supported this provision is that the voters have the final word.

Decisions about which schools to close or open, which teachers to keep or let go and which programs and activities will be continued are all local decisions, as they should be. But the reason for such decisions ? if they must be made ? isn?t state budget cuts for 2010.


Biggest cause of budget woes is enrollment declines

For three of the five counties I represent, the single biggest cause of district budget reductions in recent years has not been cuts at the state level. The reason for less dollars is fewer students attending public schools in those counties.

Taxpayers can?t be expected to provide funding for empty desks, though districts have struggled to reduce overhead proportionate to having fewer students.

? In Bay County, there are 1,930 fewer students than in 2006. At $6,712 per student, enrollment loss has cost Bay schools $12,954,160 over four years.

? Escambia schools have lost 3,339 students since 2006. This one variable has resulted in a loss of $21,960,603 at $6,577 per student.

? Okaloosa has 1,674 fewer students than in 2006. At $6,657 per pupil, the district is $11,143,818 poorer due solely to declining enrollment.

Other than an unprecedented projected loss of 323 students for 2010, Santa Rosa has had steady enrollment in recent years as has Walton County.

To view a spreadsheet of Northwest Florida school districts, their funding history and enrollment trends, open the attached excel spreadsheet. Source: Florida Senate Ways and Means Committee, May 12, 2009


What can you do? Get involved locally

In the weeks ahead, our local school boards will be completing their budgets for next year and our neighborhood schools will be planning for staff, curriculum, and programs. It?s never an easy process and, with the economy still teetering, the future of education funding is less than certain.

The best asset your schools could post to their balance sheets is the involvement of concerned parents, educators and members of the community. Attend the meetings. Ask for your copy of the school?s budget and ask questions. Offer your recommendations for what?s more important and what?s less essential. It?s your children, your money, and your schools. The best administrators will be glad to see you, welcome your suggestions and probably put you to work helping to make our schools better.

Please continue to share your views with me, as well. Your comments, criticisms and guidance help me do a better job. Every day when I walk onto the Senate floor I whisper a prayer of thanks that you have given me the privilege of a lifetime ? to listen to you and to speak for you in the Senate.
For more information about this or any other issue, please contact Senator Don Gaetz, by e-mail, by letter, 217 Miracle Strip Parkway, SE, Ft. Walton Beach, FL 32548 or call 1-866-450-4DON toll free from anywhere in Florida.

To ask a follow on question or to send Senator Don Gaetz an Email: http://www.gulf1.com/Elected/gaetz/Gaetzmail.htm

If you do not wish to receive future legislative updates from Senator Gaetz click here: Remove From Don Gaetz Mailing List

 

[Bob Wells]

Thanks Robert, and you should be on "How They Do That"

 

[kkddbb]

Im in the commericial building industry and do school work statewide and my sister is a teacher. The school system has the money, they simply dont spend it wisely. I know, what else is new. The school system statewide will lobby for money, but dont have a clue as to how to spend it. Schools even without the stimulas are built this time of year and theres no more than usual. These buildings are the best built buildings you can build. The school system is not at all involved in the design process and its there where huge money can be saved. They let factories reps and architects specify anything they want without going over budget. If they tried to save money instead of use all they have, we could put money to other resources. If bay county is losing students, why have we renovated almost every school in the last few years or built new ones without looking at the census first. Allow me an example... I was doing a jobsite visit in bay county and saw an unlandscaped area. I asked the contractor why they werent touching it and he informed me that it wasnt in the budget. Well, i looked at a specified product that has now become a monopoly product for the school system. This product is no better than their compeditors. So i put numbers together that showed the cost difference between the specified and a substitute. The cost was so large they could have landscaped the entire school property. I sent this breakdown to the school board as a private citizen and heard nothing back. When the private sector ie private schools expand, they watch their expenses like us citizens. When the government expands, they do so on our dime and without budger interest. Throwing more money at a situation is not the answer, especially when it comes to the government.

 

[Bob Wells]

Yeah and Don Gaetz had his centralized kitchen that failed, yet we elected him to the Senate. As for the monies spent on schools, I would venture to guess that buildings need renewal and to be able to get the money it has to be done. Prior to Bay County having it financial difficulties it was a growing district and needed to grow, much like Walton County. There were folks that did not believe a HS or Middle school in South Walton would succeed. Sounds as though you may be part of the problem and not part of the solution. When you put a bid in you should show how you are saving money for the district.

 

[Susan Horn]

Indeed, if we ran our small business the way gov't is run, we'd be outta business in a snap.

But I don't know how to fix the gov't inefficiency. How do you get salaried folks with little or no performance requirements to squeeze taxpayers' pennies as tight as they probably squeeze their own? The waste I see in gov't offices is astounding -- of time, office supplies, and poor organization/prioritization. Lots of politics and empire building/turf protection contribute to inefficiency as well.

Would love to see some new methods implemented that increase efficient use of tax dollars and slash waste!

 

[Winnie]

Indeed, if we ran our small business the way gov't is run, we'd be outta business in a snap.

But I don't know how to fix the gov't inefficiency. How do you get salaried folks with little or no performance requirements to squeeze taxpayers' pennies as tight as they probably squeeze their own? The waste I see in gov't offices is astounding -- of time, office supplies, and poor organization/prioritization. Lots of politics and empire building/turf protection contribute to inefficiency as well.

Would love to see some new methods implemented that increase efficient use of tax dollars and slash waste!

I've never worked in an office, private or public, where I did not find many ways to cut costs. I can sqeeze a penny until Lincoln wails! When working in the private sector, my ideas were implemented and appreciated.

 

[Susan Horn]

I've had the same experience. In a parochial instituion, I was actually hired to come in and provide objective analysis to help them improve efficiency and effectiveness. They didn't like what I told them, and my consulting position didn't last too long with them. They didn't implement my suggestions at the time, but under pressure from higher authorities, over time, a lot of my suggestions were put into place. So odd, the dynamics of large institutions, instituional passive aggression and so on.

I prefer private sector work as well!