Line Item Transfers

During the course of school year the Longmeadow School Committee routinely makes a series of line item transfers to modify the allocation of budgeted monies.  These changes are usually developed by the SC Finance Sub-Committee and then presented to the full SC and adopted without much discussion.  SC meeting minutes usually do not include the details and only reference a document that is called FY2012 General Fund Revision #__ or FY2012 Grant/ Special Revenues Revision #__.

At the SC meeting last Monday night (12/12/11) there was an agenda item to discuss and approve three General Fund line item transfers- two of which included movement of budget dollars to be utilized for purposes different than originally targeted.

Here is an outline of the three line item transfers as best I could understand from the discussion...

Transfer #1-  Transfer $2500 from Williams Middle School "supplies" line item for the purchase of 5 new Apple iPads.
Transfer #2- Correct line item mistake for a Bookkeeper salary (simple entry error)
Transfer #3- Transfer $47,000 from two "salary" line items to be used for the purchase of 2 MacBook computer carts.

I credit new committee member Jim Desrochers for initiating a more thorough discussion of Transfers #1 and #3.  Without this discussion much of the detail would have been missing from public view.

Below are the highlights:

1. Williams Middle School received 2 iPad carts (50 iPads) as part of a larger School Dept technology purchase.  They now want 5 more iPads to be used by teachers to develop lesson plans and not have to share with students and worry about having to recharge them after they had been used all day in the classroom.  Transfer #1 takes $2500 originally allocated to supplies and moves it to purchase computer hardware.
   
   
2. LEEF provided grant money to Center/ Wolf Swamp ES for the purchase of 2 MacBook computer carts.  However, this money was used to fund the purchase of 4 -iPad carts (25 iPads each, total = 100) rather than being used for the intended purpose.  Teachers at Center and Wolfswamp Schools objected to this "repurposing" of LEEF funds so a transfer of funds of $47K from two budgeted salary lines is being proposed to correct the "error" and purchase 2 MacBook computer carts.  The 4- iPad carts will remain at Center School and Wolfswamp schools to be used in classrooms.
   
   According to the Superintendent Doyle, there was some miscommunication between the schools and the IT department about what type of "computing devices" were to be purchased.  Since the money used was provided by LEEF for a specific purpose, there is a need to purchase the two MacBook computer carts.
   
   
3. Mr. Desrochers asked an interesting question:
   If Transfer #3 is needed to correct a mistake because 100 iPads were purchased by "mistake", then why is there is a need to purchase 5 additional iPads (Transfer #1)?
   
   It was explained by Superintendent Doyle that taking 5 iPads from the carts would cause problems with not having enough iPads per classroom and interfere with instruction.

Below is a LCTV video clip (courtesy of LCTV) with the discussion that accompanied this agenda item.

It is worth watching this short video clip to hear additional comments by Ms. Jester and Mr. Desrochers.  Here are a couple of quotes...

Mr. Desrochers stated...  "technology is a thing that everyone is focused on... but it might not be the right thing to spend our money on"

In closing remarks on this subject, Ms. Jester said:  "we need to be cognizant of the expectation by the community that we do not see unexpended funds as kind of a 'candy shop' and a new way to spend money... there is an expectation that we will turn back unexpended funds at the end of the year."

The three proposed General Fund line item transfers were approved by the SC.

Let's hope that this latest series of line item transfers is not the beginning of how the School Committee plans to fund the School Department's growing appetite for new technology!

SC Considers New Social Media Policy

The Longmeadow School Committee led by member Michael Clark is working to create a new social media and networking policy for both students and teachers- one that better reflects the changes that are happening today in our rapidly changing world.  The SC recognizes the need for a more updated policy given the introduction of more advanced computer technology and resources for our students.

Last Wednesday, November 30 a public forum was held at Longmeadow HS to discuss the directions of this new policy and to obtain feedback by parents and others.

As you will see in the video below (another huge thank you to LCTV for sharing it) there are many strong opinions on both sides of this issue.  The issue feels alot like the early discussions regarding the inclusion of sex education in our school curriculum.  At this public forum some objections were voiced against any inclusion of any social media as part of the classroom... particularly with regard to the use of Facebook.  There was also strong support for educating our children (as well as parents) about the use of all social media and the need for watching your online digital identity.  Development of a new comprehensive social media policy will not be easy.

Feedback can be sent directly to Michael Clark at mclark@longmeadow.k12.ma.us.

IT Consolidation- Part II

Read the first post on this subject- IT Consolidation, Part I

I believe that effective use of computer technology and related systems is one of the important keys to our long term success as a town. Many corporations have successfully navigated recent turbulent economic times through innovative use of technology. Productivity gains leading to lower costs can be achieved through effective deployment of new capital (+ employee training) particularly for computer technology related systems.

Various computer technologies and systems are involved in many aspects of our town government ranging from the Finance Department, Town Clerk and Assessor’s offices, Storrs Library, DPW and Police/ Fire Departments.

Technology is vitally important to the success of the education process in Longmeadow as well.

As a town we do some things well and other things not so well.

The installation of the new water meters with transmitters that allow the town to collect and bill town residents in a much faster and more efficient manner is but one small example of how technology can help the town reduce costs and achieve our long term goals.

Our town wide high speed phone system can effectively inform town residents (or a group of town residents) about an emergency or situation in a very short time and is another good example of what we are doing well.

In contrast to those examples, original property records in the Assessor's Office are 20th century technology at best. If you have needed to review the details of your original property record at Town Hall, you will find that the town still uses paper records. Let’s hope that the piece of paper for your original plot plan is never lost or misplaced. Check with East Longmeadow and other surrounding towns and you will find that they utilize an online GIS system which provides a wealth of information for homeowners and other interested parties. I suspect that there may be significant cost reduction and/or service improvement opportunities in this area.

We need more training for all of our town employees including teachers to effectively utilize the technology resources that we already have and for each town employee to become more productive in the workplace.

The list of technology needs in our town are great…

It is more than new computers, wireless networking and new software for our school system. Police, Fire, Town Hall, Storrs Library all have opportunities and needs that could reduce costs and provide new services that must be considered when allocating our limited financial resources.

Without regular (or annual) Proposition 2½ overrides Longmeadow will always be required to prioritize its needs. Technology equipment and resources will become an ever increasing demand on our limited resources.

Armand Wray, School Committee chair cited a “memorandum of understanding” (MOU) between the SC and SB at this week’s SC meeting. It stated that the proposed new IT department’s budget will not be subject to “line item” transfer of funds to other school department needs.

That is not my concern…. The primary mission of the School Superintendent and the Longmeadow SC is the education of our children.   Adding the additional responsibility for the broad scope of the town’s IT needs just doesn’t make sense.

The issue of "student privacy" being used as a reason for consolidating the IT department under the School Department is a "red herring".  The Police and Fire Departments already have rigid security requirements under Homeland Security so the issue is not unique within our town.

From Wikipedia… Information Systems (IS) is an academic/ professional discipline concerned with the strategic, managerial and operational activities involved in the gathering, processing, storing, distributing and use of information, and its associated technologies, in society and organizations.

I recommend that the Longmeadow Select Board consider creation of a new separate department under Town Government called Information Systems and not simply consolidate the current town and school IT efforts under the auspices of the Longmeadow School Department.

There will be a Select Board hearing on Monday, November 15 at 8 PM to hear public comments regarding the consolidation of the school and town IT departments under the School Department. This public hearing is required because a change in the Town Charter is required.

While it would appear that the Aseltine-Barkett-Swanson majority is in favor of this change and this hearing is only a formality, I would urge all concerned residents to attend the meeting and voice their opposition to this town charter change.

Note: If you are interested in adding your comments, simply send them with your name and address to longmeadowbuzz@comcast.net.

Longmeadow Select Board Approves FY11 Budget

“At a special board meeting held on March 22, the Longmeadow Select Board approved a town budget of $51,389,100; a reduction of $385,775 from the current year’s spending level. This budget, which reflects a 4% decrease in state aid and the anticipated reduction of other local receipts, will be put before town residents at the Longmeadow Annual Town Meeting on May 11.” [press release, 3/23/10].

The FY11 budget process which has been followed on the Longmeadow Buzz since November when the Tri-Board (School Committee, Select Board and Finance Committee) met has been very difficult. Many budget cuts have been proposed and then restored by both the School Committee and Select Board after careful analysis and feedback from public forums. During this budget process a Select Board initiative toward creating a more sustainable budget was not very successful and next year’s budget will likely meet similar difficulties.

Below are a few short video clips (courtesy of LCTV) from last night’s special SB meeting which provide an overview of various SB member’s positions on the current budget.

The first video clip is Mark Gold explaining his proposal to balance the budget while maintaining as many important town services as possible. His long hours of work to “drill down” into the budget details with Finance Director Paul Pasterczyk, Town Manager Robin Crosbie and others were key to achieving the balanced budget that was approved at last night’s SB meeting.



The second clip is Rob Aseltine “thanking” Mark Gold for diligent work but stating he could not support the budget as proposed because there were insufficient cuts in town side headcount and services and that it did not meet what he felt was the desired sustainability requirement. Without additional town side cuts, the school dept would be severely impacted with their increasing technology and curriculum needs. In this video clip, Mr. Aseltine also suggested that after the June election when the “new board is constituted”, he will launch an important initiative to reduce the town side cost of doing business.



In the next clip Mark Gold provides some additional thoughts on the FY11 budget.



Robin Crosbie- Town Manager shares her thoughts on the issue of “comparable cuts” in budget items. Rob Aseltine had challenged the TM and the SB many times in the past few months suggested that there were insufficient town side headcount reductions as compared to the School Dept. proposal.



This next short clip is Paul Santaniello summarizing his thoughts on the FY11 budget.



The final video clip is that of SB Chair Bobby Barkett commenting on the FY11 budget and expressing some significant reservations that the desired “restructuring” of town government was not achieved and fearing that the state legislature may impart some mid-fiscal year cuts that could be very difficult for our town finances to absorb.



The final vote on the FY11 budget was 3-2 with Gold, Santaniello and Scibelli in favor and Aseltine and Barkett opposed.

A Budget Update for Longmeadow

As reported in a previous post a collective bargaining agreement has been signed between the Longmeadow School Committee and the Longmeadow Education Association. While this agreement does not reduce the $2.15 million projected deficit for the FY11 budget, it does provide town leaders some clarity about unresolved potential future salary obligations for the town. The estimated salary budget cost avoidance of this contract vs. a 1% COLA for FY10 and FY11 is estimated to be ~$675,000 assuming that teachers salaries are ~ 75% of the town employees. Let’s hope that the remaining town and school collective bargaining units are considering similar contract agreements as the Longmeadow Education Association.

click here to read full story

There was some additional news this past week regarding the state aid… Governor Patrick announced that his proposed FY11 budget would include level funding for education and unrestricted local aid for cities and towns.

The $2.1 million projected deficit for FY11 discussed at earlier budget meetings (Tri-Board + Select Board) anticipated a 15% cut in local aid for Longmeadow. FY10 state aid for Longmeadow is expected to be $5.6 million (Chapter 70 = $4.34M + unrestricted local aid = $1.23M) … so a 15% shortfall = $837K. If the FY11 budget proposal for level funding for cities and towns passes the legislature, it would shrink the projected FY11 deficit for Longmeadow to $1.31 million.

However, given that this is an election year (and Gov. Patrick is running for re-election with state Treasurer Timothy Cahill as one of his opponents), there is hardly unanimous support for this level funding of local aid to cities and towns given the current economic environment.

click here to read full story

In the past week, Mass State House Ways and Means Chairman Charles Murphy- the chief budget writer from Burlington, MA was quoted as saying: “I heard what the Governor said to you yesterday about level funding local aid. Well, good luck to him!”

It looks like it will sometime this summer before Longmeadow will have solid information about how much local aid it will actually receive for FY11! Not much different than last year.

Bottom line

Given the difficult fiscal situation still facing the state of Massachusetts, Longmeadow should continue to plan how it would deal with a significant drop (10-15%) in state aid. Perhaps, the idea of multiple budget scenarios and related cuts should be used as suggested in earlier Tri-Board budget discussions.

Both the School Committee and Select Board will continue intense budget discussions next week and it will be interesting to see what actions each group plans take to meet their assigned targeted cuts (Schools = $1.5 million cut, Town = $650,000 = $2.15 million).

Upcoming dates for the FY 11 Budget Process….

1. Select Board/ Regular Meeting, February 1 at 7 PM- Police Dept Community Meeting Room


2. School Committee- Special Meeting- February 4 at 7 PM in the School Committee Room at Longmeadow HS to discuss the School Department FY 2011 Budget.


3. School Committee- Public Hearing- February 8 at 7 PM in the LHS Cafeteria- on the Longmeadow School Committee budget.


4. School Committee/ Select Board- Special Meeting- February 24 at 7 PM in the School Committee Room FY2011 Budget Presentation


5. February 26- FY2011 budget submission by Town Manager to Select Board

Check the Town Calendar at LongmeadowBiz for the latest calendar of scheduled events.

Longmeadow Teachers Agree to 0% COLA

The Longmeadow School Committee and the Longmeadow Education Association have reached a two-year collective bargaining agreement that provides for a 0% COLA for FY2010 and FY2011. Below is the official press release....

"The Longmeadow School Committee and the Longmeadow Education Association are very pleased to announce that they have reached a two-year collective bargaining agreement with the Association’s approximately 285 teachers, counselors, and specialists. During the negotiations that resulted in this agreement, the Committee and the Association recognized the extraordinary financial challenges facing the District. Although we are in difficult financial times, we all kept our “eyes on the child” and reached an agreement that does not further stress our financial resources. The agreement, which the LEA ratified last week and the School Committee approved this evening, provides for zero percent cost of living adjustments (COLAs) in FY 2010 and 2011, permits a temporary reduction in professional development days over the two-year period, and goes through August 31, 2011. The Committee and the Association are pleased that we have reached an agreement especially at this critical budget time."

Now that this contract has been settled... will the other town employee collective bargaining units without contracts for FY2010 and FY2011 do the same and accept a 0% COLA?

As summarized in a recent post (Tough Times Ahead for Longmeadow- Part IV, 1/10/10) achieving a balanced FY2011 budget will be very difficult with a current projected budget deficit of over $2 million. This agreement to a 0% COLA for FY2010 and FY2011 provides significant financial relief to the town of Longmeadow and allows our town leaders to create a balanced FY2011 budget without the uncertainty of a teachers union collective bargaining agreement.

A large thank you to Longmeadow teachers!

Tough Times Ahead for Longmeadow- Part IV

I have now been writing about Longmeadow’s budget problems for about one year (see A Financial Tsunami Is Heading Toward Us (1/16/09). The situation really hasn’t changed since the last time I wrote on this subject… see Tough Times Ahead for Longmeadow- Part III (12/06/10).

Previous posts include:
Tough Times Ahead…Part I
Tough Times Ahead….. Part II

Here is an overview of the current fiscal crisis facing Longmeadow…

• The town is facing a $2.1 million budget deficit for the upcoming FY11 without considering the financial impact of ongoing collective bargaining with the teachers, firefighters, police and other town employee unions.


• A 1% COLA adjustment for the current FY10 and FY11 years would add an additional $900,000 in additional operational costs (FY10 = $300,000 and FY11 = $600,000). Such a contract settlement would balloon the FY11 deficit to $3 million.


• There is $0 in our free cash account.


• There is $1.9 million in the Operational Stabilization Fund (OSF).The SB has recently adopted a policy that stated they will not authorize the use of OSF monies which depletes the fund below $1.0 million unless there is a plan to replenish the fund to that level.

A large majority of the town + school budget costs are employee salaries + benefits so a reduction of $2,100,000 in expenditures likely means significant layoffs and/ or furloughs. Paul Pasterczyk, Longmeadow’s Finance Director stated at a recent SB meeting (12/07/09) that any employee layoffs would also require the town to pay unemployment compensation/ severance benefits that could total as much as $450-600,000.

Achieving a budget reduction of $2,100,000 (~4% of total budget) will not be very easy without seriously affecting the quality of life in Longmeadow. One of the options being seriously considered by some SB members though not voiced during public meetings is the closing of Storrs Library. Closing of the Storrs Library would save an estimated $675,000 but it would be a severe impact to our community given the large number of people who use this important resource on a regular basis.


Other options that may be considered by the SB to reduce costs include:
- regionalization of town services including library, DPW, fire, water
- continued consolidation of town departments
- institution of a fee based curbside trash collection

The Town of Longmeadow is also engaged with the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) on a path to the building of a new high school at an estimated price tag of ~ $80.5 million. Approval by the MSBA will likely come sometime in late March after which the town has 120 days to approve the project. Longmeadow’s share after reimbursement by the state has been estimated to be ~ $44 million. The high school project must be approved at a town meeting and town election (Proposition 2½ debt exclusion override). If the Prop. 2½ debt exclusion override is approved, cost to the average property owner has been estimated to be $1/$1000 of assessed property value or $300/year for a $300,000 home. This is an extremely important project to the town but it would appear to be in serious jeopardy given the current budget crisis and national/ local economies (see my earlier LongmeadowBuzz post- Now Is the Right Time!)

The Town Manager is scheduled to present the proposed FY11 budget (including the School Dept) to the SB on February 26. It will be very interesting to see how the TM manages to balance the budget. From recent SB discussions, it would appear that town employee COLAs will not be included and any potential financial impact will be ignored. At their December 7 meeting the SB asked the School Committee to deliver 70% of the required cuts (~$1.5 million) in their proposed FY11 budget and the Town Depts to provide 30% of the required cuts (or $630,000). They also asked for priorization of the proposed cuts.

Here is what I see taking place later this year….

1. Presentation of a balanced budget (without contract settlements?) at the Annual Town Meeting (ATM) on May 11 with budget cuts significantly affecting both school and town services. It is possible that there also may be a vote on a Proposition 2½ operational budget override to balance the budget.
   
2. At the ATM there will be a warrant article for a Proposition 2½ debt exclusion override for $44 million to build a new high school.
   
3. Town elections will be held on June 8 to decide the two separate Proposition 2½ override questions. It should be noted that the last Proposition 2½ (operational) override for $2.1 million in November 2007 passed by only 6 votes. The outcome of these votes will influence the quality of life and services in our town for many years.

One thing that concerns me greatly is the lack of interest and/or understanding by many town residents about this current crisis. As I survey residents around town and ask them what they think, many of them are not very familiar with the school building process or the severity of the need to reduce the town budget. It will be too late if town residents wait until the annual town meeting to provide their inputs to town leaders…. the decisions will already have been made.

Now is the time to become involved and provide inputs to our town leaders about how to manage the budget!

[If someone is interested in contributing an article to the LongmeadowBuzz forum, simply send a request to LongmeadowBuzz@comcast.net with your name and address and you will receive an invitation to join. Anyone can post a comment to a posting but we would like to disencourage anonymous entries. All comments on this forum are moderated to eliminate objectionable content.]

Tough Times Ahead for Longmeadow- Part II

Monday, November 30 is the next Longmeadow Tri-Board (Select Board, School Committee and Finance Committee) meeting during which serious dialog about the FY11 budget process will begin. Select Board chair Bobby Barkett stated at a recent SB meeting that this next Tri-Board meeting was likely to be “very contentious” because of the difficult financial issues facing the town and the likely need to make significant cuts in both town and school services in order to balance the FY11 budget. The difficulties in setting priorities for cutting town and school services presents some major challenges for our elected leaders.

In my previous post summarizing the Tri-Board’s first meeting on October 19, I highlighted some of the major financial issues facing the town of Longmeadow including the following….

• There are continuing significant reductions in state aid for the current FY10.


• The Longmeadow Teachers, Firefighters, Police and other town employee unions have not as yet settled contract negotiations for FY10 and beyond. Each 1% annual increase in COLA would be an additional $300,000 in annual budget costs. The current FY10 budget does not include any COLA provisions.
  
  
• Longmeadow faces a projected $2.1 million budget deficit in FY11 without consideration of the financial impact of current union contract negotiations.

As labor contract negotiations continue without agreement, significant budget uncertainties are created which makes the upcoming budget process even that much more difficult. Let me explain further….

• Assume that both unions agree to a 1% COLA adjustment for the current year and for each of the next two years.


• This COLA would add an additional $900,000 in additional operational costs to the FY10 (+$300,000) and FY11 (+$600,000) budgets.


• The total budget deficit (FY10 [adjusted] + FY11) that must be dealt with by the Tri-Board would balloon to $3,000,000.

The Town currently has very little free cash (appropriated most of it at the October 27 Special Town Meeting); there are monies in special purpose reserves funds (water/ sewer, CPA, etc.) and $2.2 million in the Operational Stabilization Fund (OSF) which is considered the “rainy day” account for funding special circumstances and events. According to Mark Barowsky- Finance Committee chairman, a portion of the money from the last successful Proposition 2½ override ($2.15 million- Fall 2007) was placed in this OSF account for use to maintain services for FY08 --> FY10 and beyond so it might be considered for possible use to help balance the FY11 budget.

Recent efforts led by Town Manager Robin Crosbie and Select Board member Mark Gold to identify new revenue sources ($>10K) which might help balance the FY11 and beyond budgets have not been highly successful and do not seem likely to significantly improve the FY11 revenue situation.

To make the financial crisis facing the Town even more difficult.... it is likely that taxpayers will be asked to vote at the Annual Town Meeting next April (and Town Elections in June) in favor of a Proposition 2½ “debt exclusion” override to fund the new High School project. The Massachusetts School Building Authority has recently approved Longmeadow’s new High School project –estimated at ~ $80+ million- and allowed it to move forward to the Schematic Design phase. It has been estimated by the Longmeadow School Building Committee that approval and passage of this project by town voters will add ~ $1 to the current mil rate which translates to ~ $300/year for a house assessed at $300,000 (~6% increase in annual taxes).

The Town can certainly decide to allocate a portion of the monies in the OSF to help balance the upcoming FY11 budget but not without other implications. If the Town uses a significant portion of the OSF to avoid major services reductions for the upcoming FY11, then there could be a large impact on our bond rating (lower rating --> increased interest costs) when we go forward with the new high school project unless the Town shows how it plans to meet growing budget shortfall in future years (FY2012 --> FY2015).

If one looks at Longmeadow’s annual budget for both school and town related services, you will see that the major component is employee salaries. Any significant reduction in budget spending via reduced town/ school services means employee layoffs. A previous post on LongmeadowBuzz blog asked teachers and other unions to consider a 0% COLA for FY10 as a good faith effort to help avoid/ minimize town employee layoffs.

I would not like to see headlines in the local newspapers….

followed by:

Given today’s financial reality for many town residents, it will be difficult for Longmeadow voters pass two large Proposition 2½ overrides come next spring. The last successful override in the Fall 2007 passed by only a small majority (6 votes with a 41% voter turnout). We need a new high school but we also need to maintain the quality of life and town related services that make Longmeadow a great place to live.

Let’s hope that both our town leaders can successfully navigate these turbulent financial waters.

It’s all about the money!

The following are excerpts from an April 30 Longmeadow School Committee PR.

“The Longmeadow School Committee and the Longmeadow Teachers Union have been engaged in “Interest Based Bargaining” since January. As of April 29, a settlement had not been reached and both negotiating teams have agreed to jointly file for mediation with the Division of Labor Relations for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The School Committee is hopeful that with the assistance of a state mediator, the parties will reach resolution on a successor agreement before the August 31 expiration of the current agreement.”

“The School Committee recognizes that the current financial climate makes collective bargaining extremely difficult for both management and the union. The School Department budget, recently approved at Town Meeting, included more than $200,000 in step increases imbedded in the current collective bargaining agreement for the teachers, but did not include additional funds for a cost of living adjustment (COLA). The Committee recognizes that there is a potential $600,000 deficit for the FY2010 budget and that such a deficit will place an even greater strain on the District’s limited resources. In the next two weeks, the School Committee will be taking the difficult action of reducing its workforce for the 2009/2010 school year.”

In the May 14 issue of the Springfield Republican, there was an article about the upcoming SC/ teacher’s union mediation process. Marcia Haar, president of the Longmeadow Education Association, was quoted “These difficult economic times require a level of creativity in negotiations that a mediator should be able to facilitate.”
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For anyone who has been reading my posts on LongmeadowBuzz, you will know that I believe we as a town need to be realistic as to what we can afford whether it comes to teacher (and other town employee) salaries, building a new high school or repairing our decaying town infrastructure (water/ sewer lines, DPW facility, etc.).

Longmeadow is certainly not isolated from the difficult economic times that the world is now experiencing. The town is receiving significantly less state aid than in previous years and our other revenue sources (auto excise taxes, interest on town deposits, etc.) are down sharply. At the same time some of our expenses, particularly those related to Special Education are escalating at a fast pace.

In the world around us, we are seeing skyrocketing unemployment/ job losses, business bankruptcies, crashing stock markets and collapse of some of our best know financial institutions. For even the most savvy people, financial survival is becoming more and more difficult with every passing day. No one knows for sure when this crisis will be over.

Now back to the subject at hand….Looking from the outside it would appear that one of the key obstacles in these SC/teacher union negotiations is likely related to cost of living adjustments (COLA) and other salary/ benefit considerations that need be factored into the new three year teachers contract.

In other words…. “it’s all about the money!”

From what I understand about the Longmeadow teacher’s contract there are at least three components that make up total teacher compensation. These components include step increases, education credit raises and a COLA.

According to my source the step salary schedule for the current contract ending August 31 provides for an average of ~2.8% for every year up to 15th year.

[It is interesting to note in the SC press release that $200,000 for step increases has been “allocated” in the FY2010 budget. However, at the April 27 Select Board meeting the Finance Committee chairman stated that the current teachers’ contract has ~ $350,000 for step increases. Does that mean that the FY2010 school dept budget as approved at Town Meeting does not include the full allocation of salary step increases and is $150,000 short? How about the allocation of funds for education credit raises in FY2010?]

The current contract provides for teacher advancement of their Masters Degree and education credit raises of ~ 1.5 - 2.7% for every 15 credit hours achieved. Obviously, this salary increase is not achieved every year.

For teachers who have been in the system longer than 15 years and who are approaching retirement there are longevity pay increments during the last three years of employment. The current increment is a $3000 increase for each of the last three years.

In today’s uncertain times, a “no cut” employment contract would appear to be a great job benefit. According to the current contract, notice of termination must be given to a teacher before June 15 otherwise employment is guaranteed until the end of the following school year. There are not many people employed in business today that have such an employment contract. Usually, it is 2 weeks notice or less.

Town Meeting passed the FY2010 budget without provisions for teacher or police/fire COLAs. Each 1% COLA that is agreed to will cost the town ~$300,000/year. Now that the teachers union and SC have initiated mediation, the police and fire unions will likely await the outcome and not be inclined to settle for anything less than what the teachers receive.

It is interesting to note that April Consumer Price Index (CPI) data reported today showed prices were unchanged from March and 0.7% lower than one year ago- the largest 12 month drop since 1955. If this is the case, why is there a need for a “cost of living adjustment”?

As reported at Town Meeting, the town has $2.1 million in its Operational Stabilization Fund (aka “rainy day” fund) which will likely be used to meet any contract financial obligations and to balance the FY2010 budget. Let’s be careful that we do not use all of this money too quickly or else we may find that it is still raining for the next two years or more and we have no easy remedy.

Let me repeat what I said three weeks ago in previous Buzz posting…

"I am hoping that the teachers and town employee unions will agree to a 0% COLA for at least one year. We need all of our town employees and teachers to help maintain the quality of life and education in our town. We also need to recognize the difficult financial circumstances that lie ahead and plan accordingly."

School Committee/ Select Board Broadcasts

If you are looking to watch the February 23 Select Board meeting, it is now available for web viewing on the LCTV website.

LCTV will be posting web rebroadcasts of both the School Committee and Select Board meetings on their website every week. Here is a direct link.

Two suggestions...

1. Check out the agenda on the Town Calendar on LongmeadowBiz.com to find agenda items of interest
2. Play the Windows Media Player version of the broadcast so that you can fast forward to the topic of interest.

Cuts in state aid are announced

Some “relatively” good news…

Today, Governor Deval Patrick has announced cuts of state aid to cities and towns will total “only” $128 million as compared to earlier estimates as high as $500 million.

See full article on Boston.com.

Gov. Patrick also announced that the $128 million in cuts would not affect the state aid to cities and towns for public education but did not indicate how these latest cuts would be allocated town-by-town across the state.

With the new information and applying them equally based upon original state aid allocations ($128M/$5.3B = 2.4%), our "guess" for reduced state aid for Longmeadow is ~ $205,000. Add this number to the $200K shortfall in other town revenue highlighted during the Select Board meeting earlier this week, the town will likely need to cut ~ $400K in expenses for the FY2009 budget year.

It will be interesting to see how the Town Manager/ Select Board and School Committee address this revenue shortfall.

SC Candidates Answer Some Tough Questions

As it has been highlighted on this blog in the recent past, the Town of Longmeadow and its citizens are facing a financial crisis over the next few years. With the rapidly escalating costs of education (+ other town services) and slow growth sources of revenue, our town will be forced to make some tough decisions about how to spend our money. In past years Town taxpayers have already shown their displeasure with Proposition 2½ overrides and last year a $2.1 million override was passed by the slimmest margin (6 votes).

In the upcoming Annual Town Elections on June 10 there are six candidates running for three open seats on the Longmeadow School Committee. The three people that will be chosen will be have a significant role in deciding the future course of education in our town.

There is a Meet the SC Candidates forum posted on LongmeadowBiz which provides candidate profile information. In addition, there is a series of four questions which have been asked of each candidate.

1. In your view what are the most pressing needs facing our schools?
2. How should the schools best handle the rising costs of special education?
3. How do you feel about the need for a new high school?
4. What would do to improve the communication between the School Committee and town government? Between town residents and the School Committee?

Take the time to read each candidate’s profile and their answers and make sure that you stop by the Longmeadow Community House on June 10 between 8 am – 8 pm to VOTE for your favorite candidate! Your vote counts…. remember last year’s Proposition 2½ question passed by only 6 votes.

If you are out of town on June 10 and cannot vote…. That is no excuse. Stop the Town Hall before June 9, 12 noon and pick up an ABSENTEE ballot.

Let’s get a 50% turnout for this important election.