Council Rock Facing $14.2 Million Budget Deficit

A reduction in state subsidies and a loss of revenue has left Council Rock School District facing a $14.2 million budget deficit for fiscal year 2011-2012, officials said Thursday.

Earlier this month, Governor Tom Corbett unveiled his $27.3 billion spending plan, which reduces state funding for Council Rock by more than $3.75 million.

Adding insult to injury, the district has in tandem experienced a decline in revenues, Superintendent Mark Klein said at Thursday’s school board meeting.

According to Council Rock Director of Business Administration Robert Reinhart, the district’s basic education subsidies from the state have been reduced by 18 percent, or $1.7 million.

Additionally, the state Accountability Block Grant, which last year generated $425,000 for Council Rock, has been eliminated. The Charter Schools reimbursement, which last year was worth $75,000 for the district, has also been axed.

In total, Council Rock has experienced a loss of  $3.75 in state subsidies, Reinhart said.

Klein said the significant deficit is a combination of a reduction in revenue and an increase in expenses attributed to obligations like salary and benefits.

Klein said over the next few weeks, the administration will look carefully at the budget to identify savings. Klein added the deficit the district faces is not unique.

“This is not just Council Rock. Every school district looks like this in terms of their deficit,” Klein said. “We still have a significant amount of work to do. I don’t want to minimize the problem but we’re working on it diligently.”

Klein said the administration has been working “almost nonstop” on the budget over the last few weeks. They hope to have the majority of their work done by April 1 so figures can be presented to the community for review before a final budget is adopted in June.

The district has scheduled a public forum to give the community an opportunity to learn about the 2011-2012 budget. The forum is scheduled for Wednesday, April 13 at 7:00 p.m. at the Chancellor Center. 

The public forum will be an opportunity for the community to see the proposed budget and learn about the changes sought to address the deficit, district officials said.

Last month, the Council Rock School Board voted keep next year’s budget within Act 1 requirements. Under Act 1, the district must limit the budget increase to 1.4 percent of the previous year unless an exception is sought.

That means the final budget, which will be approved in June, has to be somewhere between $196 million and $198 million. A $196 million budget represents no increase. The maximum increase of 1.4 percent would put the budget at about $198 million.