District Budgets and Budget Resolutions

for 2007-08 School Year. 

School districts are required to have budgets for a school year adopted prior to the start of the school district's financial year, which the State defines to be July 1.  Without an adopted budget by that date, the district cannot do business or function.  Typically, school districts consider their budgets for the upcoming school year at the June Regular Board of Education meeting.  The budgets are developed using the best information available at that time, are discussed and reviewed by the Board and adopted.  Then, throughout the school year, the budgets are reviewed and in many cases, amended, once information about the finances are better known.  Issues which may require amending the budget include an increase or decrease in student population, which will create an increase or decrease in revenue; a reduction in revenues by the Legislature; changes in the foundation grant by the legislature; changes in state mandated expenditures by the Legislature; or increases in expenses that were not expected.   New Haven Schools has always been in compliance with these laws and always operates with a budget. 

Language in Section 18(2) of the State School Aid Act now requires local districts, intermediate districts, and public school academies to post their annual operating budget and all subsequent amendments on a website. 

New Haven Schools, in attempting to comply with this section of the State School Aid Act is posting the budgets for the 2007-08 school year on the district web site.  The district maintains five different budgets: 

• the General Fund (all revenues and expenditures related to the day-to-day operation of the district),
• the Building & Site Fund (all revenues and expenditures related to construction and bonds),
• the Athletic Fund (all revenues and expenses related to the athletic program),
• the Food Service Fund (all revenues and expenses related to the Food Service program), and
• the Community Service Fund (all revenues and expenses related to the Latchkey and Paid-PreSchool Program). 

In October, the district auditors reported that the district finished the previous school year on June 30, 2006, with a deficit in the General Fund of $323,703.  This means that in order to have the programs that it has, the district spent more money than it received during the 2005-06 school year.  Our auditors will be in the district beginning in September to review the district's accounting practices for just closed school year (the 2006-07 school year) and will be reporting to the Board of Education in October.  Then we will know the final degree to which our cost controls addressed the district deficit during the school year.  But in any case, we anticipate still being in a deficit when the auditors have completed their report.   

According to State law and the Michigan Department of Education, if a district is in a deficit situation, the Board of Education must adopt a Deficit Elimination Plan, which outlines a path for the district to eliminate this deficit over a two year period.  If this cannot be accomplished in a two year time span, then the district must ask for additional time, and show how it will eliminate the deficit.  Although the district has been experiencing an increase in its student population, we have also been experiencing an increase in expenses that is greater than the increase in revenues.  In addition, as of the preparation of this report on July 2, 2007, the legislature has not acted to address school funding.  While our costs of operation continue to increase, the legislature continues to believe that school districts can exist without an increase in their revenues.   We have seen significant increases in the cost of fringe benefits, the cost of utilities, and the cost of fuel for district vehicles.  In addition, over the past ten years, all of the school districts in the State have seen their foundation grant frozen for five of those years. 

In planning to reduce and eliminate the district's deficit, the Board of Education and administration are forced to make reductions in expenditures.  None of these decisions are easy.  They are all difficult and have an effect on our overall program.  All school districts are facing the same hard decisions.  For the 2007-08 school year, the following reductions in expenditures have been worked into the budget: 

• Layoff four teachers. 
• Not replace two staff who have resigned. 
• Layoff three ParaProfessional aides due to decreased revenues in federal programs. 
• Layoff an additional two ParaProfessional aides. 
• Reduce all expenditures by an additional $10,000 per month. 
• Reduce all Professional Development activities. 
   

We are working to address the local issues related to revenues and expenses.  However, there is no way that the legislature allows districts to generate additional revenue and many of the expense increases are beyond the ability of the district to control and contain.  We may be faced with having to reinstate teaching staff if needed to address class sizes. 

Please direct any questions about the 2007-08 budget to either Dr. Avery, Superintendent, or to Ms. Gloria Gostovich, Financial Coordinator at 586-749-5123. 

You will need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer to open these files.  Reader is a free program available from Adobe.  If you do not have Reader currently installed on your computer, click on the icon below and follow the instructions to download and activate the program. 

   General Fund Budget - Adopted June 27, 2007

   Building & Site Budget - Adopted June 27, 2007

   Athletic Fund Budget - Adopted June 27, 2007

   Food Service Budget - Adopted June 27, 2007

   Community Service Budget - Adopted June 27, 2007