At the Dec. 7, 2021, board of education meeting, Assistant Superintendent for Business Neil Sanders made the first in a series of budget presentations to the board. Calling them “budget vignettes”, Mr. Sanders will detail different aspects of the Guilderland Central School District budget and the development process to the GCSD Board of Education and community who attend and observe the meetings.
What is a rollover budget?
The Dec. 7 presentation highlighted the rollover budget, which gives the district a framework upon which to base the next school year’s budget. School budget resources come from a combination of local, state and federal contributions, however budget development must begin before all contributions are known. Because the governor’s executive budget proposal and state aid projections are not released until mid-January, the district relies on a rollover budget to begin the development process. Without all of the data, a rollover budget provides district administrators with the information they need to make plans for the next year.
Considerations of a rollover budget typically include:
- the assumption that all staffing and programs remain constant.
- projected revenues and expenses using known data or what can be reasonably anticipated based on available information.
- trending of historical data or information from outside entities which provide a basis for determining estimates. Examples of this would be teacher and employee retirement system contribution rate estimates from these systems or estimates of potential expenditures for next year based on current and past actual expenditures, such as fuel and utility costs.
Key factors in budget development
There are several factors GCSD takes into consideration when developing a school year budget, including the following.
NYS Foundation Aid funding commitment
Foundation Aid is one of the two major types of state aid in New York, expense-based aid being the other (this includes reimbursements for expenses in specific areas, such as transportation, capital construction projects, etc.). Foundation Aid, which was created with a mandate that NYS should provide adequate yearly funding to ensure every child would be provided with a “sound basic education”, is money that can be used for operations, salaries and programming.
In the past, the effort to fully fund Foundation Aid was hindered. This year, however, New York state reaffirmed its commitment to address the amount of outstanding Foundation Aid that is due to schools. GCSD anticipates it will receive $1.5 million in 2022, $2.5 million in 2023 and $2.5 million in 2024. These amounts are still subject to the full legislative approval process.
Retirement system contributions
GCSD analyzes past data and trends to create projections of what future retirement system contributions could potentially be and their effect on the budget.
Bond Debt Payments
Bond debt payments factor significantly into the budget and can encompass declining debt, perhaps from a completed capital improvement project in the past as well as increasing debt from a capital improvement project the district is undertaking. Approximately 65% of the bond payment expenses are offset by state aid reimbursement.
Health Insurance
GCSD is a member of an area school district health insurance consortium numbering 21 districts that has leveraged their combined populations to secure favorable and stable health insurance rates over many years.
Staff Retirements
When staff retires, the district is able to capture “salary breakage,” meaning a new staff member will be hired at a lower salary than the senior, retiring staff member was paid. While the district does not like to lose talent and experience in the classroom or in other positions, staff retirements can impact the district’s annual budget.
Inflation/Cost of Goods & Services
Inflation is a decrease in the purchasing power of money, reflected as a general increase in the price of goods and services in the economy. Just as the community is impacted by inflation when purchasing goods and services, the same holds true for the district.
Financial Impact Summary
- Areas of large financial impact for GCSD:
- Expenditure increase of $4.1 million (+3.9%)
- Revenue Increase of $2.8 million (+9.7%)
- Tax levy increase of $1.3 million (+1.7%)
- Maximum tax levy growth of $1.9 million
Projected Expenses
The categories in the table below are the major areas of expenditure for the GCSD budget:
|
Budget 2021-22 |
Rollover 2022-23 |
|
|
Salaries |
$45,811,052 |
$47,868,447 |
|
Salaries (support) |
$10,849,789 |
$11,250,207 |
|
Benefits |
$27,338,915 |
$28,163,100 |
|
Equipment |
$451,718 |
$469,787 |
|
Supplies/Textbooks |
$1,830,585 |
$1,903,808 |
|
Contracted |
$7,296,594 |
$7,588,500 |
|
BOCES Services |
$5,985,473 |
$6,224,892 |
|
Debt Service |
$5,110,444 |
$5,271,389 |
|
Interfund Transfers |
$305,000 |
$315,000 |
|
TOTAL |
$104,979,570 |
$109,055,129 |
Projected Revenues
The categories in the table below are the major areas of revenue for the GCSD budget:
|
Budget 2021-2022 |
Budget 2022-23 |
|
|
State Aid |
$27,293,218 |
$30,135,677 |
|
Local Sources |
$1,214,670 |
$1,176,000 |
|
Appropriation of Reserves |
$470,514 |
$470,000 |
|
Appropriation of Fund Balance |
$0 |
$0 |
|
TOTAL |
$28,978,402 |
$31,781,677 |
|
Budget 2021-22 |
Budget 2022-23 |
|
|
Property Tax Levy/Pilots |
$76,001,168 |
$77,273,452 |
|
TOTAL |
$104,979,570 |
$109,055,129 |
What comes next
Stage Two Meetings
To continue developing the budget, GCSD administrators will receive input and feedback from the seven building principals regarding how well the current school year budget is addressing the needs of students. This provides a framework of what needs to be addressed in the 2022-23 school year budget and what adjustments need to be made. These measures ensure the proposed budget will be as effective and efficient as possible.
Community Input
The district is open to hearing community input through public comment at board of education meetings, and it also plans to use a GCSD community ThoughtExchange to gather thoughts. This valuable perspective helps administrators know where and how the community believes resources should be directed.
NYS Executive Budget Proposal (Jan. 2022)
The governor’s executive budget proposal will give GCSD more certain information, in terms of what to expect for Foundation Aid and other aid categories, to draft a proposed budget.
Superintendents Draft Budget Proposal shared March 8, 2022
Once the governor’s proposed budget is released, GCSD administrators compile expense and revenue information to create a draft budget, which Dr. Wiles will present at the Mar. 8 Board of Education meeting. This draft budget is subject to revision but will provide the board of education members with a document to work from before adopting a final budget at the April 12 meeting.
Important upcoming dates
March 8: Superintendent’s budget presentation
March 15: Budget Q & A
April 5: Budget workshop
April 12: Board action to adopt the proposed budget
May 3: Budget hearing
May 17: Budget vote and election