Lewisburg Area School District Policies	Printable version
603 Budget Preperation 603. BUDGET PREPARATION The Board considers the preparation of the annual budget to be one of its most important responsibilities because the budget is the financial reflection of the educational plan for the district. The budget shall be designed to carry out the strategic plan in a thorough and efficient manner and to maintain the facilities and honor the obligations of the district. Fiscal restraint is an essential obligation to the taxpayers in our community. The Board recognizes its obligation to the taxpayers of this community to approve only those expenses reasonably required to provide educational programs suitable to the needs and desires of this district and as mandated by the General Assembly or the Federal Government. The Board directs the administration to develop a budget in compliance with the annual PA Department of Education calendar detailing the dates and deadlines for various aspects of the budget. The Superintendent and Business Manager shall present to the Board all available information associated with the budget. In preparing the budget, the Superintendent shall set general priorities for expenditures for: 1. Staff necessary for current and/or proposed programs. 2. Technology, equipment and supplies necessary for current and/or proposed programs. 3. Additional staff required to meet the district’s obligations under Special Education Federal and State education laws and regulations. The district will use Governmental Accounting Standards Board Statement (GASB) accounting regulations as required by law. As a component of budget preparation, the superintendent shall notify the Board of the appropriate Act 1 index, as set by the PA Department of Education that will be used in limiting tax increases for the budget year. The budget should evolve primarily from the needs of the individual schools and programs as expressed by the building principals and administration and be compatible with district goals and strategic plans. The budget is required by law to be balanced. The transfer of funds from the district reserves for recurring expenses is considered poor fiscal management and will be considered by the Board only in extenuating circumstances. The Board shall be provided with the following information each year for consideration as part of the budget review process: 1. Total anticipated revenue and expenditures for the upcoming school year, including any actual or anticipated changes in state subsides. 2. Estimated student enrollment projections for the upcoming school year. 3. The assumptions used in the preparation of the budget. 4. Estimated revenue and expenditures in each financial category for the previous year and the upcoming year. 5. Listing of all exceptions for which the district may be eligible. 6. Relation of the estimated tax increase to the Index limitation for the district. 7. Programs services or expenditures that would be proposed as cuts to balance the budget if proposed expenditures exceed revenues. 8. Increase, if any, of tax rate in relation to the Index, and the estimated cost of the increase to an average taxpayer in the school district. Building Instructional Operations Priorities will be developed each year by an approved allocation, requiring principals and their teams to prioritize expenditures in each category based upon the instructional needs of the students and staff in order to meet the educational goals and objectives of the building and the district. Proposed building allocations will be derived from a formula that is based upon the total projected enrollment of the building and the state-designated multiplying factor. Increases in building budgets will be determined by the Superintendent in collaboration with the Director of Administrative Services based on projected available funding for the entire district. Curriculum Courses and programs will be reviewed by the administration to determine their effectiveness. In the event that a course or program is considered for deletion, the Superintendent will make a recommendation to the Board with an impact statement that details the implication of the change. Course And Section Size Guidelines For Scheduling The administration shall make every effort to schedule a minimum of ten (10) students per course or section of each course. In the event a course or section of a course falls below ten (10) students, the following criteria will be applied to determine if the course or section of the course should be offered: 1. Any course with a three-year enrollment average of fewer than seven (7) will be removed from the course selection guide for two (2) years. Exceptions: a. The course is a state requirement. b. The course is a district required course. c. The course is part of a necessary sequence of courses in a specific program. The course will be placed back in the course selection guide in the third year. If fewer than seven (7) students register for the course at this time, it will be removed permanently. Course changes will be reported to the Board in January of each year. 2. Prior to building the Master Schedule, the administration should not enter any course in the schedule process that has fewer than ten (10) students unless it is one of the exceptions listed in #1 or the school is unable to meet the student’s course or credit needs through other offerings. 3. If an entry-level course has fewer than ten (10) students requesting registration, then consideration should be given to eliminating the program for that class of students. 4. When a course has multiple sections, the administration shall attempt to reduce the number of sections to bring the section sizes to ten (10) or more making an effort to place the students from the eliminated section into one of the remaining sections. All courses or sections of courses with an enrollment of fewer than ten (10) will be presented to the Superintendent by May 15th of each year. The Superintendent will give final approval for the courses or sections of courses to operate. The Board will receive a report in June of the courses and sections of courses with fewer than ten (10) students that are to operate for the following school year as well as a three-year review of all high school courses. Fixed Costs And Support Service Costs Any secondary bus route with an excess of eighty percent (80%) of bus capacity will be reviewed to determine whether or not an additional bus or bus route is needed due to crowded conditions. Any bus route that exceeds one (1) hour and ten (10) minutes travel time will trigger the need for an additional bus run or route. Any vehicle over ten (10) years of age will be reviewed for possible replacement. Any vehicle or piece of equipment under ten (10) years of age will be maintained to the greatest extent possible and as long as it is cost-effective to do so. Any building mechanical system over twenty (20) years of age will be reviewed for possible replacement. Any unreserved fund balance in the General Fund that exceeds the maximum allowable by the Pennsylvania Department of Education will be transferred to the Capital Projects account to fund facilities and equipment maintenance and replacement, debt service, and capital improvements. Supplemental Extracurricular Salaries Supplemental salaries will be funded to the extent possible. Each program retained must have enrolled an average of at least ten (10) students over the three (3) preceding years in order for a supplemental salary to be considered for sponsorship. An assistant position for extracurricular programs will be recommended when the average student to position ratio over the three (3) preceding years exceeds 15 to 1 for competitive activities and 30 to 1 for non-competitive activities. If the ratio is less than 12 to 1 for a specific competitive activity or 24 to 1 for a specific non-competitive activity over the prior three (3) years, then the assistant position for that specific program will be eliminated. Athletics And Extracurricular Music The operating budget for athletics and extracurricular music will be zero-based. Zero-based budgeting is the process of building budget from zero each year. An annual allocation based upon a formula is NOT provided. All expenditures must be justified each year. Budget Reductions While it is the Board’s responsibility to make the final decision regarding the district’s budget, the Board encourages a collaborative approach to generating ideas for balancing the district budget. In the event of a significant budget deficit, the Superintendent may request the Building Administrators to meet with their building personnel to discuss and gather input on possible ways to create potential savings to the building level budgets. The Superintendent also has the option of initiating a Stakeholder Review Committee to review the district budget and provide feedback regarding potential cuts. The Superintendent will consider and analyze the impact of potential cuts, prioritizing those items that preserve the quality of the educational program we provide for our students. The Superintendent will present his/her recommendations to the School Board along with the impact of the recommendation. School Code – 24 P.S. Sec. 601, 687 Taxpayer Relief Act – 53 P.S. Sec. 6926.301 et seq Board Policy – 604