MSAD #46 Budget 2007/08 by Voting Line

MSAD #46 Budget 2007/08 by Voting Line
	2006/07	2007/08	Inc./Dec.	% change
5 Administration	241,537	259,505	17,968	7.44
6 Board of Directors	37,000	43,968	6968	18.83
7 "Principal's Office"	553,467	584,678	31,211	5.64
8 Guidance	176,779	159,810	(16,969)	-9.60
9 Library	162,596	147,893	(14,703)	-9.09
10 Special Education	1,415,274	1,538,721	123,447	8.72
11 Vocational (TCTC)	1,054,560	1,071,846	17,286	1.64
12 Athletics (Co-Curr.)	310,295	340,166	29,871	9.62
14 Transportation	511,641	537,973	26,332	5.15
15 Capital Outlay	173,116	31,191	(141,925)	-82.0
16 Operation of Plant	869,603	878,266	8,663	1.0
17 All Other (Instruction)	4,028,316	4,404,318	376,002	9.33
Total	9,534,184	9,998,335	464,151	4.87
18 Adult Education	117,570	122,038	4,468	3.80

Here's another bit of information on the proposed budget. This data is mostly from the Budget Workshop last Monday (April 23). I added the last (percentage) column.

The increases in lines 5, 6, and 7 (Administration, Board, and "Principal's Office") are pretty strong, given the recent voting history regarding those lines. Two of these lines were defeated at last years referendum, and required a District budget meeting to get by the voters. Increases in these lines appear to be double compared to others, and will play into the hand of those already claiming that administrative costs take away funds from students.

Lines 8 and 9 (Guidance and Library) show decreases because of cuts or shifts in personnel. The Library cut represents elimination of one of the two ed tech positions in the Primary/Middle School Library. Why is the position being eliminated, if it was necessary to begin with?

Line 15 (Capital Outlay) shows a strong decrease because we don't need to pay the Architect anymore. This decrease of $142,000, together with a gain of $362,000 from State reimbursement of architect fees to date, helped soften the blow of this budget. Without this shift of $500,000, the budget total would be that much higher.

Line 17 is, basically, the costs of classroom instruction, that is, salaries and benefits. As a percentage of the entire budget, it was 42% in the current year and is 44% in the proposed budget. Note that this is not all salaries and benefits; not included here are superintendent's office salaries, administrative, guidance, and library salaries, special education salaries, the salaries of bus drivers and maintenance personnel, salaries for athletic directors and coaches, and the District's portion of salaries at the Tech Center, as well as the associated benefits for each of these categories of District personnel.*

It is perhaps worth noting, as it was at the Workshop, that all of the District's contracts are up for re-negotiation next year. Don't forget, the teacher minimum salary has been increased to $30,000 and it's unlikely that teachers will be looking to accept a two tier salary structure. Expectations will be at least equivalent to boosting all teacher salary steps by the amount of the state increase to the minimum teacher salary.

Get ready!

*Update: An article in the May 2 issue of the Piscataquis Observer states that total salaries and benefits are up $579, 385, and that health benefits (a significant component of this figure) are up 8.66%.