CUSD Budget adoption for 2015-16 - Highlights that the Public Should Know #2 - Before Adopting a 2015-16 Budget, Employment Contracts should be completed.

How is the Public suppose to be able to comment on the Budget Adoption at the Public Hearing without knowing the terms of the new contracts and how they will affect the budget?

With regards to the FY 2014-15 school year, teachers worked without a contract for nearly the entire year. Months after the November 2014 election of three school board members whose campaigns were union-funded, teachers received $4 million in salary increases.

On April 22, 2015 CUSD executed a retroactive Teachers contract that covered the period July 1, 2014 to June 30, 2015. Under that agreement the District increased compensation by 3% (a 2% salary schedule increase and a 1% off schedule collaboration agreement). This contract was required to be completed by June 30, 2014 because the District adopted a 2014-15 Budget that materially changed changed negotiated items in employment contracts such as class sizes, furlough days and employee compensation.

The 2015-16 budget is another year of increased employee compensation - increased expenses and no real improvement in reducing class sizes, restoring programs or addressing facilities issues. A win for employees - not students.

Class Size

There is no real movement towards reducing class sizes- the LCAP needs to state specific objectives for the reduction of class size - having the LCAP goal to be to adjust class size averages per negotiated agreement means class sizes could be increased as long as the an increase was agreed to. The LCAP is showing that $5 million was spent to reduce class sizes- but the budget assumes the same class sizes as last year?

Increasing The Number of Studnets Who Complete A-G Requirements

The quickest way to increase the number of students who complete A-G requirements would be to eliminate CCP (Almost 700 students need credit recovery because of CCP) This takes up a block that could be used for an A-G class and the class serves no real purpose. Get RiD Of IT!!!!

Increasing Parent Engagement

The LCAP states:

Up-graded parent communications- how?

Increased participation in District Advisories by 2% - proof?

The Public states over and over that it is not being included in decisions - The firing of Principal Halt, the mis-use of Melo Roos funds and the controversy over changes to the District Calendar and now surprising and alarming findings of overcrowding at many schools are just some examples.

Facilities

As long as CUSD starts every budget by first increasing employee compensation, and then seeing what is left for everything else we will never see any real improvement to our facilities. If revenue is to be capped at 2008 levels then you need to cap expenses at 2008 levels. Employees should not expect to be first in line in every budget decision because it is hurting the Districts ability to provide educational opportunities for students. Under LCAP the District needs to engage parents more directly...

“Raises for employees or reducing class sizes?”

“Raises for employees or fixing facilities”?

“Raises for employees or restoring instructional time?

The good news is that the District (after providing compensation increases had $2 million for facilities maintenance).

Site Supply

The LCAP state: “Site discretionary supply accounts will return to baseline levels” What does that mean? The budget documents show that there has been no change in site supply funding from last year to this, so there has been no additional funding for school sites.

The bottom line for parents and the public is that we do not receive adequate funding to pay our employees well and provide needed programs and instructional time. Our students are constitutionally entitled to more funding then they are receiving.

The Board will vote to Adopt the 2015-16 Budget on Wednesday June 24, 2015 and will do so without having employment contracts in place.

The Budget that is being passed includes:

1.02% COLA

A Full Year Automatic Step and Column Salary Increase

Health and Welfare Benefit Increases

The State is Requiring the District to Increase CalSTRS and CalPERS contributions

CUSD cannot continue to increase expenses when revenues are capped at $8,500 per student by 2021

Labor Agreements:

CUEA Teachers

CUEA Certificated Employees (Teachers) Contract not completed for 2015-16 But the budget if adopted shows a $4.4 million increase in compensation for teachers.

Number of teachers:

• 2014-15 2,093
• 2015-16 2,157
• 2016-17 2,157
• 2017-18 2,157

CSEA Classified Employees

CSEA Classified Employees Contract not completed for 2015-16 But the budget if adopted shows a $1.3 million increase in compensation for classified staff.
Number of Classified Staff:

• 2014-15 1,411
• 2015-16 1,405
• 2016-17 1,405
• 2017-18 1,405

CUMA Management

Number of Classified Staff: The District is hiring 10.9 new Administrators? Cost?

• 2014-15 171.4
• 2015-16 190.5
• 2016-17 190.5
• 2017-18 190.5

2015-16 Budget Assumptions:

It should be noted that Site Supply Budgets did not increase they are the same as last year despite an increase in District Revenues.

• K- 5 $21/student
• 6-8 $25/student
• 9 - 12 $33/student

Staffing Formulas are the same as last year - there is no effort to reduce class sizes except in grades 1 -3 which by law must be 30:1 max

• K 30.5:1
• 1 - 5 31.5:1
• 6-8 32.5:1
• 9 - 12 34.5:1

The State of California is passing increased CalSTRS and CalPERS cost down to Districts- the Contributions will represent 10% of the Districts budget by 2021. We cannot pay that because employee compensation is already over 90% of CUSD’s budget.

CalSTRS contributions increased from 9.5% last year 10.73 this year

CalPERS contributions increased from 11.771% last year 11.847 this year

Health and Welfare Benefit Cost increased from $40.2 million to $41.3 million

Liability insurance costs up by 2% to $2.6 million

Utility Costs are up by 6%

This article is to long for the Patch- it can be read at: http://disclosurecusd.blogspot.com/2015/06/cusd-budget-adoption-for-2015-16_21.html