Get involved in the school budget process

Now that we’ve flipped the calendar, our local school officials will soon start getting into the nitty-gritty of budget planning for the 2012-13 school year. Board of Education meetings will be filled with discussions on what’s in and what’s out for next year.

It’s going to be a challenging next few months for school officials, as they try to create budgets that not only meet the new state and federal curriculum mandates, but fall within the 2 percent property tax cap requirement as well. School districts in New York state are already adapting for the new Common Core Learning Standards, which take effect next year. Add to that the more rigorous teacher and principal evaluation standards, and school districts are tackling a whole host of changes all at once.

And these changes will come with a cost. Districts have to spend money to train the teachers and administrators who will be affected by the changes.

Consider the tax cap, which will limit increases in a district’s tax levy — the total amount of money that will be raised by way of property taxes — to no more than 2 percent. As it is, districts must meet contractual obligations that are already in place, such as scheduled salary increases. Some districts that have settled contracts more recently negotiated pay freezes for next year. But that doesn’t mean costs won’t still go up. Health insurance costs continue to rise. And every year, the state demands more money from schools for the state pension fund. Utility costs go up. Buildings need to be maintained. And mandate relief never seems to come to fruition.

So, administrators’ and school boards’ struggles to meet the 2 percent tax cap will likely mean tough choices when it comes to programs that communities value.

A school district’s first priority is to make sure that the mandated learning standards are being met. And it must provide safe facilities for its students. Beyond that, what discretion do districts have? Programs like art and music could be in jeopardy, as could athletics. There’s nothing that says a high school has to have a football team. Sure, sports are a great source of pride for any community, but they aren’t mandated.