The waiting game

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Editor's note:"Cutting to the Core" is a five-part series examining the effect the 2009-2010 Pennsylvania budget debate could have on the residents of Mifflin and Juniata counties. Today's article examines education.

LEWISTOWN - Caught in the crossfire as lawmakers debate in Harrisburg about funding for Pennsylvania education, area school districts have found themselves left in a position where they can do little more than plan and wait for the final numbers to come in.

Senate Bill 850, rejected by the House Appropriations Committee on June 8, and Gov. Ed Rendell's budget proposal differ drastically in their plans to use American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, or stimulus, money for education.

While SB 850 proposed using the recovery funds to keep basic education funding at the same level as 2008-2009, the governor's plan would use the funds to increase pre-k to 12 education spending by $418 million, according to the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center.

To maintain flat funding, the Senate bill would eliminate programs like Classrooms of the Future; Science: It's Elementary; and dual enrollment. The bill also proposed major cuts to the Head Start, C.H.I.P. children's health insurance, charter school reimbursement and Pre-K Counts programs.

But, while the Legislature battles over the issues, local school districts are left waiting in the wings for answers.

According to a statement from the Pennsylvania School Board Association: "... school boards still find themselves in the position of trying to adopt their budgets without knowing for sure how much in subsidies they will be getting from the state. This should be concerning to all, particularly to those who would like to see the stimulus money used to help stabilize property tax rates throughout the commonwealth."

Public schools

The governor's proposed budget includes a $1,680,576 increase in basic education funding for the Mifflin County School District, said Chief Financial Officer Sean Daubert. To provide the increase, this budget proposal uses state-controlled federal stimulus money, he said.

In contrast, the Senate proposal would use the stimulus money to "supplant $418 million of state funding for (basic) education," providing no increase for school districts, Daubert said.

Juniata County School District Business Manager Ken Eyler said the governor's education budget, which is proposed in February every year, is not always the final agreement.

Because school districts are required to pass a budget before the state does, Daubert said they are "forced to guess what the basic education funding will be, which results in a guess as to how much local real estate tax is required."

Mifflin County's budget "guess-timate" includes the governor's basic education funding proposal, Daubert said.

Superintendent David Runk said the school district always budgets what the state provides in writing.

"(We) take the conservative approach," Runk said. "We have projects in mind and positions to add if the funding is increased."

Because of the uncertainty, Juniata County School District Superintendent Kenneth Albaugh said he advised his district's business office not to factor the main portion of stimulus money into its budget.

"We incorporated IDEA and Title stimulus funds only," because both proposals add the extra dollars for these programs, Albaugh said.

Both school districts passed budgets with no tax increases for the 2009-2010 school year; but, sacrifices were made to keep millage rates at their current levels.

"Cuts have come from personnel, utilities, maintenance, technology, equipment, etc.," Albaugh said. "We try very hard not to cut classroom supplies. It will be very difficult to make additional cuts. Most of our budget contains fixed costs, such as maintenance, utilities, salaries and benefits."

Eyler said Juniata County also has reduced purchasing new or replacement items such as computers and equipment.

Mifflin County eliminated some positions to balance its budget, Runk said.

"Some were due to class-size reductions in some of our elementary schools, and the business manager's position was eliminated," Runk said.

Daubert added that equipment and supply purchases also were cut back for 2009-2010.

Regarding the federal stimulus money, school district officials said they have yet to see most of it.

"The large portion of stimulus money, which is at the core of the state debate, has not been released," Albaugh explained.

Mifflin County also was promised stimulus money, but "the Senate budget bill has removed that, so we are not counting on that," Runk said. "We have tentative plans to use it or any portion of it if there is some return."

If, in a worst-case scenario, funding is reduced, "we will call a special meeting and go to work," Runk said. However, if the school district receives more funding, the school board has developed a list of priorities on which to focus, Daubert said.

In Juniata County, "if additional funds are in the final state budget, we may look to reopen our budget to include additional revenue and associated expenses," Eyler said.

School district officials said they also are worried the Senate bill would prevent them from receiving a second wave of stimulus money. The bill proposed replacing state funds with "$317 million in federal stimulus funds that were intended as one-time grants to enable school districts to invest in educational improvement strategies and school modernization," according to a press release from the Pennsylvania Department of Education.

If stimulus funds designated for education are not used as planned, Pennsylvania could miss out on competitive education grants that will be available in the fall. These funds will be awarded to states based on how well they accomplish the goals of the stimulus funds, according to PSBA.

Early childhood education

Public schools are not alone when it come to education providers that would be affected by the budget. Preschool programs also are at risk of being cut.

Jane Neff, director of Hide 'N' Seek Christian Daycare and Preschool in Lewistown and a partner in the Pre-K Counts program, said the most drastic news she has heard is a 50-percent cut in Pre-K Counts funding.

The governor's plan proposes an increase of approximately $9 million for the program; however, the Senate bill would cut Pre-K Counts funding in half.

Pre-K Counts is a free educational day-care program for children who are at risk of school failure. Initiated by Gov. Rendell, the school-readiness program served 64 Mifflin County children in 2008-2009, Neff said. Five child care centers in Mifflin County offer full- and half-day programs during the school year.

The number of children in the local programs will be reduced if funds are not provided, Neff said. Most importantly, the cuts would affect the children's preparation for school, she added.

"We do have meetings with kindergarten teachers in Mifflin County, and they have seen positive effects on their kindergarten children. They noticed the value (of Pre-K Counts)," Neff said.

The governor's budget includes an almost 10-percent increase for the program.

"At this point, we are hoping to open at full capacity," for the county schools in the fall, Neff said.

Regarding Head Start child care programs, funding would remain stable under the governor's budget; the Senate bill would reduce funding by 50 percent.

Higher education

Rendell also has proposed a tuition relief plan to begin this fall for families earning up to $100,000 a year with students attending the commonwealth's public colleges and universities, including the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education and the 14 community colleges. Combined with expanded PHEAA grants in this year's budget, 20,000 more Pennsylvanians would be able to afford to enroll in college.

The relief plan would be funded by taking video poker gambling out of the shadows, regulating it to ensure public safety and taxing its proceeds in order to benefit Pennsylvanians.

More than 170,000 students could benefit, and an additional 10,000 students may be able to go to college who otherwise could not afford it, or will stay in-state instead of leaving Pennsylvania. Under the governor's plan, everyone would pay something - at least $1,000 a year - but the emphasis would be giving families opportunity to pay what they can afford.

Apart from the new plan, funding for the state system of higher education differs by approximately 14 percent, or $66 million, between the governor's plan and the Senate bill.

The governor's plan keeps funding level for Penn State, Temple, Pittsburgh and Lincoln universities. State funding for the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency would increase by $35 million, and community colleges would receive $10 million in additional PHEAA grants, plus a $5 million increase to support community college operating costs.