The Madison Central School Board meets tomorrow night to consider its Fiscal Year 2012 budget. The net damage, courtesy of Senator Russell Olson and Governor Dennis Daugaard: a 3.3% reduction from FY 2011 expenditures:
| FY2011 | FY2012 | change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Fund | $6,997,977 | $6,725,874 | -3.9% |
| Capital Outlay | $1,675,094 | $1,566,336 | -6.5% |
| Special Ed | $1,380,856 | $1,372,829 | -0.6% |
| Pension | $168,547 | $169,519 | 0.6% |
| Food Service | $541,915 | $540,478 | -0.3% |
| Health Plan | $863,000 | $874,000 | 1.3% |
| Total | $11,627,389 | $11,249,036 | -3.3% |
Some highlights from the proposed budget:
- 63% of Madison Central's budget comes from local revenue. 27% comes from the state. 7% comes from the federal government. 3% appears to come from reserves. Assuming about 1150 students, locally we're spending $6133 per student, while the state is contributing $2604 per student. The disparity between local and state per-pupil spending has only gotten worse, thanks to legislators in Pierre who pass the buck... but won't pass the bucks.
- The budget dedicates only $98,200, 6% of capital outlay, to operation and maintenance of plant. As terrified parents Becky Brown and Jennie Thompson have publicly stated, our high school is a fire trap. It thus seems surprising the board can't find a little more money to put toward installing a fire door on the chorus room or building a shed for the kiln outside the art room.
- Maybe the board could get some of that money from the extracurricular budget: the board plans to spend 36% more on boys' sports than girls' sports. Apparently the boy jocks need to learn to be 36% more efficient.
- Sports don't pay for themselves: total cocurricular income (admissions, activity tickets, etc.) is $63,250, only 46% of the cost of boys' and girls' sports, and only 17% of the total cocurricular budget of $380,701.
- Neither does food service: the school chow line takes in $313,528. The budget allocates to food service $540,478.
This budget isn't final: the Madison Central School Board will hold its full budget hearing in June.
Mostly the same republican legislature that did not pass a budget so they could get more from the federal stimulus. Now they pad their political reputation for cutting by shorting the people who voted them in. One does not have to think real deep for the word 'greedy' to come to mind.