Councils Issue $860K Budget Reduction to School Board

The councils of Scotch Plains and Fanwood have mandated an $860,000 reduction to the Board of Education budget.

The number was announced during a public forum Monday night, which was the culmination of about a week of discussions amongst all parties and a paid consultant who helped guide the process.

The reduction will equate to about a $72 decrease to Fanwood's school property taxes, dropping the increase residents will see this year from $436 to $364. In Scotch Plains, the tax rate was lowered by $46, dropping the increase this year from $299 to $253.

The committee initially started out with a recommended reduction of $1.2 million, according to Anthony Novembre, the consultant who assisted the councils. But after some discussion with school officials, that number was reduced to $860,000.

Novembre, a former county superintendent who has also served a number of other leading roles in New Jersey schools, was paid $4,000 for his services.

While the Board of Education must follow the $860,000 mandate, it does not necessarily have to abide by the specific line item reductions that were recommended by the councils.

Those included the following:

$60,000 of free balance

$26,000 from salaries for grades 9-12

$29,000 from attendance and social work salaries

$36,213 from education media services salaries

$45,000 from basic skills salaries

$27,500 from guidance salaries

$55,000 from child study team salaries

$36,287 from improvement of instruction or staff training salaries

$25,000 from general administration/miscellaneous items

$75,000 from central services purchases

$15,000 from central services supplies

$30,000 from administration information technology purchases

$10,000 from custodial services in terms of purchasing – professional and technical

$20,000 from custodial services - cleaning, repair, maintenance

$15,000 from custodial energy and gasoline

$35,000 from upkeep of grounds salaries

$20,000 from transportation supplies

$100,000 from athletic salaries

$200,000 from facilities acquisition services – roof replacements held off for another year

Both mayors noted that a number of these line item reductions were recommended directly by the board, although they emphasized that the board did not drive the process.

The reductions as they stand result in the loss of an additional four personnel on top of the 10 that were previously announced during the budget process, Scotch Plains Mayor Nancy Malool said. It also leads to two jobs being reduced to part-time.

The mayors reiterated several times during the forum that they spoke to representatives from all of the school unions during the process, but that they have no say in negotiations, which are still ongoing. The defeated budget, they noted, assumed a zero salary increase for teachers and their having to pay the newly mandated 1.5 percent in health care coverage. If they don't ultimately agree to a salary freeze, then that will mean more cuts must be made to the budget.

"We did meet with them at our first meeting and we emphasized to them that what they do in their negotiations has an impact on us," said Fanwood Mayor Colleen Mahr. "The cuts we make will not be the only cuts. There will be additional cuts if they don't agree to a salary freeze."

One of the concerns from several parents in attendance was the impact of that suggested $100,000 reduction in athletic salaries – which represents the elimination of middle school sports.

The mayors noted that the school district had initially also suggested they look at freshman sports, but that they decided to retain that. Superintendent Margaret Hayes stated that no cuts like these are easy, but that other schools are also eliminating middle school sports, so it made sense to explore that avenue as competing teams continue to decrease.

She also noted after other parent questions that some cuts are being made to the music program, although the programs themselves should remain in place, and that she's currently working with Scotch Plains-Fanwood High Principal David Heisey to see if they can sustain any cuts to co-curricular clubs.

"At the end of the day there's only so much money, and there's many demands for that money," Hayes said. "We're trying to be as reasonable and balanced as can be."

The meeting, which was held in the SP-F High auditorium, was packed with parents and community members who came out to hear how the nearly $80 million budget would be altered in light of the original $74 million tax levy's defeat during the April 20 election.

While some emphasized that the $860,000 in additional cuts was not enough, others expressed concern of what impact it will have. More on their comments can be found here.