Whichever scenario District 97 comes up with to raise much-needed revenue to curb a nearly decade-old structural deficit, it appears 2011 is the earliest the district would go for a referendum.
At a Dist. 97 Board of Education financial study session last week, members and administration discussed several scenarios involving combinations of budget cuts and a referendum by 2011. Administrators said the cuts would not involve staff, noting that about 40 teachers would be retiring this year and that hires would be brought in at lower salaries.
Administration and the board are planning another financial study session in February 2009 to consider their options, but said they’ve made no decisions yet. One option discussed last week involved a 30-cent tax increase plus $1.4 million in reductions. Board members stressed getting feedback from the community before making any decisions. The board also asked administration to crunch numbers for a referendum if $750,000 is slashed from the budget.
Therese O’Neil, assistant superintendent for finance and operations, said the district expected $350,000 in reductions for fiscal year 2010.
“We haven’t definitively identified what that $350,000 will be, but we’re going to have some retirements this year and will see a cost reduction in replacements that will help us,” she said. “It is not a cut in personnel as much as it is an identification of replacement staff coming in at lesser amounts of money.”
O’Neil said the district also expected other savings in its operations and maintenance fund, about $1.15 million, but called that only a “short bridge” for the next couple of years.
The district hasn’t gone for an education fund referendum in 20 years and successfully passed building referendum in 1999 to build to middle schools.
CONTACT: tdean@wjinc.com