It’s like a broken record. Year after year, town officials clamor about rising fixed costs – salary increases, health insurance, pension expenses, and utilities. And people are told repeatedly that there are funding gaps to close. This year is no different and, in fact, it is shaping up to be the worse budget season yet. As usual, the scenarios are not pretty. Based on preliminary estimates, it will cost the Franklin School Department more than $4.1 million to maintain the current level of school services in the fiscal year that begins July 1.
However, town officials are projecting that only $600,000 to $800,000 in new revenue will be available to the schools. That leaves a $3.3 million funding gap that will not be easy to close without what Superintendent Wayne Ogden calls “seriously painful cuts,” particularly to teaching staff who comprise 90% of our annual budget.
How did we get to $800,000 you ask? If you look at the budget documents prepared by the Town Administrator, the picture becomes a little clearer. You can view the TA’s documents by clicking here. The projections show that Franklin will receive $2,248,286 in additional Chapter 70 aid, thanks to the tireless efforts of our State Representative James Vallee. There is $1,727,323 in new revenue from the tax levy, which brings the total to approximately $4 million in new revenue to the town. That’s the plus side. On the minus side, the projections reveal that local receipts (excise taxes, et al) are down by $718,387, and last year the town took $1,000,000 from stabilization and $260,000 from overlay (which, we are told, will not be available in FY09). In addition to these figures, the last page of the documents include a list of other rising expenses such as debt, pension increases, Tri-County increases, etc. which total an additional $949,297 in reductions. So if you take those figures out of the mix, it’s down to about $1,000,000 in gross revenues available to the town.
The Milford Daily News published an editorial in its February 17, 2008 issue entitled Cities, towns need help. In it, the paper recognized the budget issues and factors underlying these woes:
The financial outlook for cities and towns is worse than it’s been in a long time, and there’s no relief in sight….
Costs for health care, energy and other municipal expenses are rising and difficult to control. A weak economy has slowed the new development that feeds local coffers. More and more communities are bumping against the limits on property tax hikes built into Proposition 2 1/2.
Last year, Franklin was fortunate to avoid many cuts by passing its first override. In addition, in the past few years, the School Committee has avoided further cuts by generating additional revenues through the adoption of school choice, and the imposition of bus, athletic, building use, and activity fees. We have also relied on generous increases in State aid and support from Parent Communication Councils (PCCs) and booster organizations. Currently, we are introducing programs for advertising on athletic fields and an Ednets website that will provide additional funding sources. Among some of the other solutions is a proposal from State Senator Scott Brown to distribute approximately $450 million in lottery revenues to Massachusetts communities. For Franklin, this would be an additional $1,480,044 in revenues for FY09. Senator Brown’s proposal is outlined here.
As an interesting side note, if you would like to see how Franklin compares with other communities in Massachusetts, Gordon Jamieson and Christopher R. Wren, two Arlington residents, have compared 2002 and proposed 2009 local aid for the 351 municipalities in the Commonwealth. They have overlaid their results on a Google map. You can view their work by clicking here.
Last month, the Masschusetts Taxpayers Foundation issued a report on the state of finances in the Commonwealth which can be viewed by clicking here. MTF’s 37th annual analysis indicates that there are a variety of factors placing ever greater pressure on the finances of most cities and towns with little relief in sight.
Finally, there is a discussion of this topic on Towncommon.net which you can view by clicking here.
No matter how you look at it, we are in for yet another bumpy ride. The School Committee will be discussing the budget scenarios beginning on February 26. We urge you to tune in and follow the progress of the budget discussions that will impact your school system.
