ShawneeDispatch.com

Tim Rooney made do with a best-guess budget situation for this year's Shawnee Mission USD 512 public budget workshop.

Rooney, district manager of budget and finance, led Board of Education members and a small group of patrons and other district staff through next year's numbers following the Board's regular meeting Monday night.

Although legislative action regarding the state's school finance system is pending, Rooney presented a budget based on what the district would receive under House Bill 2247, which specifies that aid to districts statewide be increased by $142 million. Base state aid per pupil would increase from $3,863 to $4,222.

The bill also includes several pieces Rooney isn't counting on. A provision for districts with extraordinary declining enrollment and an allowance for districts to increase their local funds by an additional 5 percent were stayed by the Kansas Supreme Court upon its review of the bill.

On June 3, the Court ruled the bill was not an acceptable school finance solution, an instruction the Legislature received from the Court in January. Besides staying several provisions it deemed would create disparity among districts, the Court ordered state aid doubled, from $142 million to $285 million more than schools received last year.

Shawnee Mission's total requested budget for the 2005-2006 school year is $354.5 million.

Based on House Bill 2247, next year's revenue will include $124.9 million in state aid, $15.4 million in special education funds and $35 million from the local option budget. Shawnee Mission currently collects 25 percent of its general operating budget, the maximum local funds allowed by law.

Sales tax, interest and some other money will round out the budget.

"Student growth, of course, drives the formula," Rooney said, explaining that state aid is based on student counts.

Shawnee Mission's enrollment is declining, and the district expects a head count of 28,563 students next year -- a decrease of 389 students or 1.35 percent from this year's count of 28,952.

Prior to the 2004-2005 school year, enrollment declined but by less than planners predicted, which Rooney said was a good thing for the budget.

"We're hoping that maybe that will be a sign that things are turning around with regards to declining enrollment," he said.

Still, because of the decrease in students, the district also will reduce staff by 28 certified and 14 classified employees, netting savings of $2.1 million.

In all, the district plans to spend $2.8 million less than last year, Rooney said.

The district also plans to maintain a contingency fund of $5.6 million.

That fund was initially mandated by the state for extraordinary, unexpected problems. Rooney said as district's budgets tightened in recent years the state loosened restrictions, and many districts began using the fund for operating expenses. Shawnee Mission, however, still had not done so and didn't plan to, Rooney said.

Superintendent Marjorie Kaplan said budget changes would depend on how the Legislature decides to allocate funds ordered by the Court, which should be announced by July 1, the date the Court required the Legislature to deliver budgets to schools.

Shawnee Mission's deadline to send the district's budget to the state is Aug. 25.

Rooney said he and his staff had prepared other budgets based on different possible scenarios. That way, he said, the district could move quickly when the Legislature does finalize next year's financial situation.