School Aid Budget Approved by Legislature, Granholm 20j veto

Welcome to Livonianeighbors.com. We hope you enjoy your visit.

You're currently viewing our forum as a guest. This means you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use. If you join our community, you'll be able to access member-only sections, and use many member-only features such as customizing your profile, sending personal messages, and voting in polls. Registration is simple, fast, and completely free. To ensure your privacy, never use personal information in your screen name or email address ("janedoe@hotmail.com" or "Billysmom" for example).

Join our community!

If you're already a member please log in to your account to access all of our features:

Pages:
1
2
…
8

School Aid Budget Approved by Legislature, Granholm 20j veto; Dr Leipa on WJR regarding latest school cuts
Topic Started: Oct 10 2009, 07:50 PM (3,655 Views)
LPS Reformer	Oct 10 2009, 07:50 PM Post #1
The schools exist to educate, not employ. Posts: 2,484 Group: Members Member #10 Joined: May 8, 2007	One Hundred Days Later School Aid Budget Approved by Legislature One hundred days after schools adopted their budgets, the Legislature passed the conference report for House Bill (HB) 4447, the school aid budget. In an all too common midnight session, and with little opportunity for public input, the conference report sailed through both chambers gathering 66 yes votes in the House and 20 in the Senate. The newest version of the school aid budget is a far cry from flat level funding but is less drastic than the original $218 per pupil reduction. The highlights are as follows: A per pupil reduction of $165—this reduction is a bottom line reduction in state aid payments and doesn’t reflect an adjustment in the foundation amount. A 20 percent reduction in Sec. 81 ISD operations. The inclusion of a minimum number of days of instruction—the conference report requires that all districts maintain at least 165 days of instruction for 2010-11 and 2011-12, and at least 170 days of instruction in 2012-13. Additionally, the law requires that a district not provide fewer days of instruction than were provided in the 2009-10 school year. Existing collective bargaining agreements supersede the implementation of this requirement. The conference report requires that districts and ISDs provide on their Web sites expenditure pie charts, details of salaries in excess of $100,000, lobbying expenditures, association fees and links to bargaining agreements, health care benefit plans and annual financial audits. Districts were granted flexibility to absorb the per pupil cut in other program areas, besides the discretionary spending categorical (state aid payments), if they agree to develop a service consolidation plan to reduce school operating costs within Michigan Department of Education guidelines. In this report the Legislature moved the retirement contribution rate from 16.54 to 16.94 percent. On the question of stimulus funds used for this budget—there’s still a carryover of $184 million. The new budget assumes that the state will enact over $100 million in new revenue. Without that new revenue the cuts would reflect the initial conference report. Details are unknown on this component at this time MASB is working with MASA, MSBO and other statewide associations to develop a more detailed analysis of what this passed budget means for school districts. Expect a full report in the next edition of Headlines and at www.masb.org. For questions, please contact Don Wotruba or Peter Spadafore at 517.327.5900.
	LPS Reform Blog++++LPS Salary List 12/07 LPS Salary List 6/09 Contact me at: LPSReformer@gmail.com


crazy_cat	Oct 19 2009, 07:03 PM Post #2
Advanced Member Posts: 313 Group: Members Member #67 Joined: May 16, 2007	40 metro school districts lose out by Granholm veto Posted: 7:51 p.m. Oct. 19, 2009 By CHRIST CHRISTOFF FREE PRESS LANSING BUREAU LANSING – Gov. Jennifer Granholm has vetoed portions of a $12.9 billion school funding bill she signed Monday. Her veto would result in huge cuts for 40 school districts, mostly in metro Detroit. The hardest hit would be the school districts of Dearborn and Livonia (each cut by $4.9 million), Walled Lake ($4.7 million cut), and Warren Consolidated ($3.7 million cut) and Ann Arbor ($3.7 million cut). Those cuts go far beyond the $165 per pupil reduction approved by the Legislature. The 40 districts are relatively high-spending districts that are funded in part by separate state formula. In all, Granholm vetoed $54 million in the School Aid Fund budget -- $51 million at the expense of those 40 districts. Granholm, in her veto message, said the School Aid Fund approved by lawmakers could be as much as $264 million short of revenue to pay for it. She called for “urgent additional action” by the Legislature, to come up with more revenue for the schools. She said without the added funds, more cuts would occur for all school districts



Mrs.M	Oct 19 2009, 10:46 PM Post #3
Advanced Member Posts: 1,064 Group: Members Member #29 Joined: May 10, 2007	Quote: FREE PRESS LANSING BUREAU The 40 districts are relatively high-spending districts that are funded in part by separate state formula. I'll bet the Grosse Pointes, Birmingham, West Bloomfield, Rochester will also be included in the 40. And here they are.. http://download.gannett.edgesuite.net/detnews/2009/pdf/1020_schooldistrictcuts.pdf Edited by Mrs.M, Oct 19 2009, 11:02 PM.



Jimid	Oct 20 2009, 06:44 AM Post #4
Advanced Member Posts: 1,100 Group: Members Member #213 Joined: July 25, 2007	Wasn't the mantra for change at LPS "doing whats best for all students"? It sounds like they have a lot in common with the Governor.



Hopeful	Oct 20 2009, 06:44 AM Post #5
Advanced Member Posts: 265 Group: Members Member #85 Joined: May 18, 2007	crazy_cat Oct 19 2009, 07:03 PM FREE PRESS LANSING BUREAU The 40 districts are relatively high-spending districts that are funded in part by separate state formula. What is "relatively high-spending district" mean? There are people that have been saying that LPS has been overspending for a long time. If LPS opens its books and actually shows the public where ALL of the money is going, will it confirm the Governor's "high-spending" characterization of LPS?



Jimid	Oct 20 2009, 06:49 AM Post #6
Advanced Member Posts: 1,100 Group: Members Member #213 Joined: July 25, 2007	Veto slashes school aid Two-thirds of the hard-hit districts are in metro area BY CHRIS CHRISTOFF and LORI HIGGINS FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS LANSING -- Gov. Jennifer Granholm flexed her veto muscle Monday, wiping out $54 million from a public school budget and putting lawmakers on the spot to come up with more cash for schools or watch deep cuts at 39 select districts, including 26 in Oakland, Wayne and Macomb counties. That's certain to stoke debate over higher taxes to pay for schools. Hardest hit by Granholm's veto would be the Livonia and Dearborn school districts, each losing $4.9 million in state aid -- on top of the $165-per-pupil reduction affecting all Michigan districts approved by the Legislature earlier this month. Oakland County had the most affected districts with 12. Ten would be hit in Wayne County and four in Macomb County. The districts, which would lose a combined $51.5 million, are among the state's highest spending and have been allowed to keep those levels under a state formula that included the vetoed funds. By signing the $12.9-billion school aid bill, Granholm allowed the state to make scheduled payments to school districts today. The vetoes won't bully the Republican-controlled Senate into raising taxes, said Matt Marsden, spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop. "Those lines the governor vetoed will simply be unfunded," Marsden said. Veto leaves 39 districts scrambling Gov. Jennifer Granholm's veto pen Monday put 39 school districts in the raging cross fire of a Lansing war over deficits, taxes and state priorities. The districts would lose a combined $51.5 million, on top of the expected cut of $165-per-pupil in state aid approved by the Legislature for all Michigan schools. Granholm called for lawmakers to approve more money for schools, as she signed the rest of a $12.9-billion school aid budget. 'We feel totally abandoned' While it put her eyeball to eyeball with Senate Republicans, who pledge no tax increases, it left school districts reeling. "We're shocked," said Tim McAvoy, spokesman for the Troy School District, which stands to lose nearly $3 million. "We feel totally abandoned. We had no idea this was coming." McAvoy said the district already cut $7 million from its budget this fiscal year. The school board must make up for the $3 million Granholm vetoed, as well as another $2 million the district will lose in per-pupil funding. "It puts us in an almost impossible position," McAvoy said. Trenton Public Schools will lose $755,250. "It's going to be devastating," said Superintendent John Save, who heard the news of Granholm's veto on his way to a school board workshop. "We had no inkling this was coming down. But you can bet we'll be talking about this in a couple of seconds." A complex formula The 39 school districts are among the state's highest spending, with large property tax bases that provide them with more money than others. A complex state formula lets them keep those funding levels from year to year. They also get the same increases in state funding -- or decreases -- that other districts get. Granholm also vetoed six other line items in the school funding budget totaling about $2.5 million. Even with her veto, Granholm warned the school aid budget could be another $200 million in the red by the end of the year as tax revenues continue to fall. The school aid bill was the last budget bill lawmakers approved in the past few weeks, after they passed an interim budget through October. Democrats have pressed for tax and fee increases to prevent an even bigger cut to schools, while Republicans have demanded a cut in the state business tax as part of any tax deal. Chart: Districts hit by Granholm's veto Districts hit by Granholm's veto The following high-spending school districts lose a special appropriation they have received for years as a result of the governor's line-item veto Monday School district What they lost Livonia Public Schools $4,922,693 Dearborn Public Schools $4,921,715 Walled Lake Consolidated $4,719,511 Warren Consolidated Schools $3,756,095 Ann Arbor Public Schools $3,714,952 Troy School District $2,958,888 Midland Public Schools $2,418,890 Northville Public Schools $2,237,370 Farmington Public Schools $2,202,803 Novi Community Schools $1,698,083 Grosse Pointe Public Schools $1,613,700 Royal Oak Public Schools $1,498,068 West Bloomfield Schools $1,479,926 Southfield Public Schools $1,284,103 Avondale School District $1,116,896 East Lansing Public Schools $1,042,480 Romulus Community Schools $1,027,393 Birmingham School District $955,748 Warren Woods Public Schools $869,670 Waverly Community Schools $780,725 Trenton Public Schools $755,250 Melvindale-N. Allen Park $726,240 Bloomfield Hills Schools $612,969 South Lake Schools $587,972 Center Line Public Schools $569,700 Clarenceville School District $563,673 Grosse Ile Schools $513,106 Lamphere Schools $455,775 Harper Woods School District $390,420 Jefferson Schools-Monroe Co. $298,894 Bridgman Public Schools $289,656 River Rouge Schools $272,583 Saugatuck Public Schools $240,900 Republic-Michigamme Schools $37,224 Port Hope Community Schools $26,448 Burt Township Schools $11,780 Colfax Twp. School District 1F $6,575 Bangor Twp. School District 8 $6,342 Oneida Twp. School District 3 $2,016 Totals $51,587,232 http://www.freep.com/article/20091020/NEWS06/910200361/1318/Granholm-veto-slashes-school-aid--39-districts-hit



This_Is_Crazy	Oct 20 2009, 06:55 AM Post #7
Member Posts: 29 Group: Members Member #397 Joined: September 30, 2009	"The conference report requires that districts and ISDs provide on their Web sites expenditure pie charts, details of salaries in excess of $100,000, lobbying expenditures, association fees and links to bargaining agreements, health care benefit plans and annual financial audits." This otta' be good! Real good!



This_Is_Crazy	Oct 20 2009, 07:01 AM Post #8
Member Posts: 29 Group: Members Member #397 Joined: September 30, 2009	Interesting that Livonia is at the very top of the cut list. That's what you get when you have someone like Liepa throwing money out and around like crazy. What on Earth was he thinking of when he gave the teacher union that raise for this year. What a dummy, what a real dummy. When everyone else was re-negotiating contracts, with concessions attached, here we had Liepa practically throwing money at them. What a dumb fool. Apparently, the state saw this too and now we (the taxpayers) are going to have to, once again, pay for Liepa's ineptitude.



crazy_cat	Oct 20 2009, 07:32 AM Post #9
Advanced Member Posts: 313 Group: Members Member #67 Joined: May 16, 2007	Hopeful Oct 20 2009, 06:44 AM crazy_cat Oct 19 2009, 07:03 PM FREE PRESS LANSING BUREAU The 40 districts are relatively high-spending districts that are funded in part by separate state formula. What is "relatively high-spending district" mean? I think it means per pupil spending (isn't Livonia in the 8,000's?) I would also venture to guess that teachers in those 40 districts are highly paid compared to the rest of the state. I wonder why Plymouth-Canton is not on the list? I thought their per-pupil spending was similar to LPS.



one_observer	Oct 20 2009, 08:12 AM Post #10
Advanced Member Posts: 351 Group: Members Member #220 Joined: August 29, 2007	Soon to be released Just how top heavy are those top spending school districts? Coming to a mailbox near you District really, really needs that millage passed! The blame, as usual, will be on Lansing - it's all because of the governor



SLIPPERY SLOPE	Oct 20 2009, 08:26 AM Post #11
Advanced Member Posts: 128 Group: Members Member #209 Joined: June 24, 2007	Jimid Oct 20 2009, 06:49 AM Veto slashes school aid Two-thirds of the hard-hit districts are in metro area BY CHRIS CHRISTOFF and LORI HIGGINS FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS LANSING -- Gov. Jennifer Granholm flexed her veto muscle Monday, wiping out $54 million from a public school budget and putting lawmakers on the spot to come up with more cash for schools or watch deep cuts at 39 select districts, including 26 in Oakland, Wayne and Macomb counties. That's certain to stoke debate over higher taxes to pay for schools. Hardest hit by Granholm's veto would be the Livonia and Dearborn school districts, each losing $4.9 million in state aid -- on top of the $165-per-pupil reduction affecting all Michigan districts approved by the Legislature earlier this month. Oakland County had the most affected districts with 12. Ten would be hit in Wayne County and four in Macomb County. The districts, which would lose a combined $51.5 million, are among the state's highest spending and have been allowed to keep those levels under a state formula that included the vetoed funds. By signing the $12.9-billion school aid bill, Granholm allowed the state to make scheduled payments to school districts today. The vetoes won't bully the Republican-controlled Senate into raising taxes, said Matt Marsden, spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop. "Those lines the governor vetoed will simply be unfunded," Marsden said. Veto leaves 39 districts scrambling Gov. Jennifer Granholm's veto pen Monday put 39 school districts in the raging cross fire of a Lansing war over deficits, taxes and state priorities. The districts would lose a combined $51.5 million, on top of the expected cut of $165-per-pupil in state aid approved by the Legislature for all Michigan schools. Granholm called for lawmakers to approve more money for schools, as she signed the rest of a $12.9-billion school aid budget. 'We feel totally abandoned' While it put her eyeball to eyeball with Senate Republicans, who pledge no tax increases, it left school districts reeling. "We're shocked," said Tim McAvoy, spokesman for the Troy School District, which stands to lose nearly $3 million. "We feel totally abandoned. We had no idea this was coming." McAvoy said the district already cut $7 million from its budget this fiscal year. The school board must make up for the $3 million Granholm vetoed, as well as another $2 million the district will lose in per-pupil funding. "It puts us in an almost impossible position," McAvoy said. Trenton Public Schools will lose $755,250. "It's going to be devastating," said Superintendent John Save, who heard the news of Granholm's veto on his way to a school board workshop. "We had no inkling this was coming down. But you can bet we'll be talking about this in a couple of seconds." A complex formula The 39 school districts are among the state's highest spending, with large property tax bases that provide them with more money than others. A complex state formula lets them keep those funding levels from year to year. They also get the same increases in state funding -- or decreases -- that other districts get. Granholm also vetoed six other line items in the school funding budget totaling about $2.5 million. Even with her veto, Granholm warned the school aid budget could be another $200 million in the red by the end of the year as tax revenues continue to fall. The school aid bill was the last budget bill lawmakers approved in the past few weeks, after they passed an interim budget through October. Democrats have pressed for tax and fee increases to prevent an even bigger cut to schools, while Republicans have demanded a cut in the state business tax as part of any tax deal. Chart: Districts hit by Granholm's veto Districts hit by Granholm's veto The following high-spending school districts lose a special appropriation they have received for years as a result of the governor's line-item veto Monday School district What they lost Livonia Public Schools $4,922,693 Dearborn Public Schools $4,921,715 Walled Lake Consolidated $4,719,511 Warren Consolidated Schools $3,756,095 Ann Arbor Public Schools $3,714,952 Troy School District $2,958,888 Midland Public Schools $2,418,890 Northville Public Schools $2,237,370 Farmington Public Schools $2,202,803 Novi Community Schools $1,698,083 Grosse Pointe Public Schools $1,613,700 Royal Oak Public Schools $1,498,068 West Bloomfield Schools $1,479,926 Southfield Public Schools $1,284,103 Avondale School District $1,116,896 East Lansing Public Schools $1,042,480 Romulus Community Schools $1,027,393 Birmingham School District $955,748 Warren Woods Public Schools $869,670 Waverly Community Schools $780,725 Trenton Public Schools $755,250 Melvindale-N. Allen Park $726,240 Bloomfield Hills Schools $612,969 South Lake Schools $587,972 Center Line Public Schools $569,700 Clarenceville School District $563,673 Grosse Ile Schools $513,106 Lamphere Schools $455,775 Harper Woods School District $390,420 Jefferson Schools-Monroe Co. $298,894 Bridgman Public Schools $289,656 River Rouge Schools $272,583 Saugatuck Public Schools $240,900 Republic-Michigamme Schools $37,224 Port Hope Community Schools $26,448 Burt Township Schools $11,780 Colfax Twp. School District 1F $6,575 Bangor Twp. School District 8 $6,342 Oneida Twp. School District 3 $2,016 Totals $51,587,232 http://www.freep.com/article/20091020/NEWS06/910200361/1318/Granholm-veto-slashes-school-aid--39-districts-hit Not to worry..........Lisa probably has that $4,922,693, and more, hidden somewhere. Didn't she just find $3,000,000? Go ahead Lisa, start uncovering the rest of it. Maybe this will make Randy look seriously at across-the-board cuts. Especially in the $100,000 plus club.



ppplivonia	Oct 20 2009, 08:57 AM Post #12
Member Posts: 25 Group: Members Member #398 Joined: September 30, 2009	crazy_cat Oct 19 2009, 07:03 PM FREE PRESS LANSING BUREAU The 40 districts are relatively high-spending districts that are funded in part by separate state formula. It all makes one wonder what the devil LPS has been reporting to the State. From what I understand the Accounting & Finance department is in shambles due to Abbey's mismanagement. Is it at all possible that incorrect numbers have been reported to the state? Numbers that Legislators make important decisions upon. How and why does this sound, oh, so familiar? Wasn't the board given faulty numbers when they decided the LI issue? Sounds like the same old stuff to me. Someone needs to check out the numbers that were reported to the State. The numbers that they were looking at when they made this huge decision to cut $4.9M. Perhaps if given accurate numbers the state would have passed over LPS as not such a high spending district. It's ALL in the numbers! Someone needs to clean this mess up.



Larry Martin	Oct 20 2009, 09:24 AM Post #13
Advanced Member Posts: 170 Group: Members Member #246 Joined: October 3, 2007	crazy_cat Oct 20 2009, 07:32 AM Hopeful Oct 20 2009, 06:44 AM crazy_cat Oct 19 2009, 07:03 PM FREE PRESS LANSING BUREAU The 40 districts are relatively high-spending districts that are funded in part by separate state formula. What is "relatively high-spending district" mean? I think it means per pupil spending (isn't Livonia in the 8,000's?) I would also venture to guess that teachers in those 40 districts are highly paid compared to the rest of the state. I wonder why Plymouth-Canton is not on the list? I thought their per-pupil spending was similar to LPS. P-CCS gets only the basic foundation allowance ~$7,600 (before the $165 cut). It appears that the veto item is the 20j payment. This is the "hold harmless" millage allowed in Proposal A. If that is the case, it is very unfair to districts collecting this millage. Livonia is one of the hold harmless districts. It gets $316.81 more per student than the base foundation allowance due to millages levied beyond 6mills on homestead and 18mills on non-homestead property. If the cut is really from the 20j payments, that means those millages are being collected from the district and not returned. The "hold harmless" districts are already 'donor' districts because of the changes in funding over the last few years. Here is the complete list of 20j districts. I have never found a list of all the millages these districts are allowed to levy. http://www.house.michigan.gov/hfa/PDFs/section20jmemo_1009.pdf I do know that Southfield collects an extra 16mills on homestead property and Ann Arbor collects an extra 4.27mills. Why would any district continue to collect the "hold harmless" millage if it isn't getting the payment? Edited by Larry Martin, Oct 20 2009, 09:27 AM.



Little me	Oct 20 2009, 09:28 AM Post #14
Advanced Member Posts: 138 Group: Members Member #37 Joined: May 11, 2007	Liepa was on WJR radio. He was singing the blues.



crazy_cat	Oct 20 2009, 09:50 AM Post #15
Advanced Member Posts: 313 Group: Members Member #67 Joined: May 16, 2007	Larry Martin Oct 20 2009, 09:24 AM crazy_cat Oct 20 2009, 07:32 AM Hopeful Oct 20 2009, 06:44 AM crazy_cat Oct 19 2009, 07:03 PM FREE PRESS LANSING BUREAU The 40 districts are relatively high-spending districts that are funded in part by separate state formula. What is "relatively high-spending district" mean? I think it means per pupil spending (isn't Livonia in the 8,000's?) I would also venture to guess that teachers in those 40 districts are highly paid compared to the rest of the state. I wonder why Plymouth-Canton is not on the list? I thought their per-pupil spending was similar to LPS. P-CCS gets only the basic foundation allowance ~$7,600 (before the $165 cut). It appears that the veto item is the 20j payment. This is the "hold harmless" millage allowed in Proposal A. If that is the case, it is very unfair to districts collecting this millage. Livonia is one of the hold harmless districts. It gets $316.81 more per student than the base foundation allowance due to millages levied beyond 6mills on homestead and 18mills on non-homestead property. If the cut is really from the 20j payments, that means those millages are being collected from the district and not returned. The "hold harmless" districts are already 'donor' districts because of the changes in funding over the last few years. Here is the complete list of 20j districts. I have never found a list of all the millages these districts are allowed to levy. http://www.house.michigan.gov/hfa/PDFs/section20jmemo_1009.pdf I do know that Southfield collects an extra 16mills on homestead property and Ann Arbor collects an extra 4.27mills. Why would any district continue to collect the "hold harmless" millage if it isn't getting the payment? Thanks for the explanation. So, does the "operating millage" (which they are asking us to renew) go to the 20j payment? If so, why would we renew it, send it to the state and then not get it back? I do wonder how PCCS can provide an equally good education with 300-some dollars less per pupil than LPS. Frankly, I think Granholm is just playing games - she is trying to force the Republicans to raise taxes.



Vanna White	Oct 20 2009, 10:26 AM Post #16
Advanced Member Posts: 806 Group: Members Member #32 Joined: May 10, 2007	Email blast just received: SHS Parents, In case you have not heard about the cut to school aid for Livonia Public Schools by the Governor yesterday, attached is a note from Dr. Liepa to his administrative staff regarding this and an email he sent back to Charles Wilbur from the Governor’s Office this morning. Note to administrators: Hi everyone - If you have not heard, the governor implemented a cut to section 20j of the school aid act with a line item veto yesterday when she signed the school aid bill. This means our school district will be cut an added $316 per student ABOVE the $165 per student that was proposed. Our loss is now in the range of $7.5 million to $8.0 million for THIS year. Below is a message I sent to the governor's office today that outlines how I feel about this. We will be sorting this out over the next several days (and weeks). Please feel free to share this message with staff so they are informed, as it is a major media story today. News channels have been around the schools. We should do what we always do, that is make sure they are off our property and not disrupting school. Separate from that, they can do as they wish outside the property. Please let me know if you have questions. Randy Email to Charles Wilbur from Dr. Liepa: To: Wilbur, Charles (GOV) Chuck - This craziness has gone on long enough. Playing political chicken with our children has to stop. I will be contacting everyone and anyone who will listen about what is really going on here and it won't be to put political pressure on people, but to expose the stupid games people play. To have the governor cut our district by an added $316 per student, when we are one of the lowest per student foundation districts on the 20j list clearly shows that no one understands what they are doing. I will look forward to the governor coming down to our district and meeting with our parents to discuss how this can occur. I really don't want to hear that it is someone else's fault. They didn't sign the veto. She can also meet with me to go over our budget line by line to address how we can deal with our budget shortfalls four months into our fiscal year. I look forward to hearing from you. Randy



uh-oh	Oct 20 2009, 10:29 AM Post #17
Advanced Member Posts: 108 Group: Members Member #349 Joined: November 11, 2008	Actually, I just recently saw a publication by one of the private schools, which puts PCCS above LPS in nearly every category of the MEAPS and MME. It also had ACT data. PC had better scores here as well. Will try to get it and scan for all to see.



tburr	Oct 20 2009, 10:30 AM Post #18
Advanced Member Posts: 63 Group: Members Member #25 Joined: May 10, 2007	Superintendent, Dr. Randy Liepa, on WJR regarding latest school cuts. Frank Beckmann discusses the cuts that were made to the Livonia Public Schools with Superintendent Dr. Randy Liepa. http://s6.zetaboards.com/Livonianeighbors/topic/8585387/ Link will direct you to the topic on LN Edited by tburr, Oct 20 2009, 10:33 AM.



tburr	Oct 20 2009, 10:31 AM Post #19
Advanced Member Posts: 63 Group: Members Member #25 Joined: May 10, 2007	Superintendent, Dr. Randy Liepa, on WJR regarding latest school cuts. Frank Beckmann discusses the cuts that were made to the Livonia Public Schools with Superintendent Dr. Randy Liepa. http://wjr.com/Article.asp?id=%201553850&spid=6525 WOW!!!! Edited by tburr, Oct 20 2009, 10:41 AM.



tburr	Oct 20 2009, 10:45 AM Post #20
Advanced Member Posts: 63 Group: Members Member #25 Joined: May 10, 2007	http://www.detnews.com/article/20091020/POLITICS02/910200366/Granholm-vetoes-extra-funds-for-dozens-of-school-districts From the Detroit News Granholm vetoes extra funds for dozens of school districts Lansing -- Gov. Jennifer Granholm signed a public school aid bill late Monday that spells double trouble for some local districts -- a cut of $165 per student and elimination of money designed to protect them when property tax reform was passed. The governor vetoed $51.5 million for 51 eligible districts -- including some of the highest spending in the state -- that have received payments since Proposal A reform was approved 16 years ago. Proposal A aimed to eliminate property taxes as the source of funding for school districts and replaced it with basic foundation grants. The largest cuts among the 26 districts from Metro Detroit will be felt by Dearborn and Livonia, being slashed $4.9 million each, Walled Lake, which would lose $4.7 million, and Warren Consolidated, by $3.7 million. Of the 51 districts, the cut affects 39 that get more than $11,000 a year per student, almost $4,000 more than poorer districts. They'll now be more in line with the basic foundation grant unless lawmakers override her veto. Northville Schools Superintendent Leonard Rezmierski called the news of the additional cuts under the Proposal A funding "disappointing" and pointed to the fact they came so late in the school term. "This will be a horrific amount of reduction after we've started school," Rezmierski said of his 7,300-student district. He said he did not know what programs will be cut but that he will protect classrooms. "(The cuts) will be a significant issue we will have to look at (Tuesday) morning." The Proposal A cuts represent about $2.2 million of Northville's $65 million annual budget for K-12. For the Troy School District, the Proposal A and per-pupil cuts mean about $5 million in lost revenue, spokesman Tim McAvoy said. "To slash these funds when we are well into our fiscal year is unconscionable. It puts us (in) an extremely difficult position." Every school district will see a cut of $165 per student, but even that reduced spending depends on an additional $100 million in revenue, which hasn't been passed by the full Legislature. School districts were getting at least $7,316 for each student this academic year before the cuts were signed by Granholm. In signing the budget bill, the governor noted that school aid has a deficit. "If this school aid bill were a check drawn on a bank, it would be returned for insufficient funds. To bring the budget into balance, I have vetoed $54 million in appropriations. But even these reductions will not fully resolve the shortfall," Granholm said. "While my approval of this budget will allow public schools to keep operating and school districts to continue making scheduled bond payments, the Legislature has much more work to do to complete a balanced funding plan for our schools." Granholm didn't leave much time. She signed off the evening before the October school aid payment is due. Matt Marsden, a spokesman state Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop, R-Rochester, said the funding gaps won't be filled. "If the governor wants to veto parts of this budget, we will not refund them," he said. "There's no will or desire for tax increases to balance the budget, since we found a way to do so without tax increases." The House and Senate have approved contrasting revenue bills. The Republican-controlled Senate passed legislation that calls for a one-year delay in a scheduled increase in a tax credit for low wage-earners and a reduction in a tax break for movie makers. But they're linked to a permanent business tax cut. The Democrat-dominated House has passed bills that would place a 3 percent tax on doctors' gross receipts and halt an inflationary increase in the personal exemption from the state income tax. To make matters worse, Treasury reports the state is taking in less sales tax revenue than projected, so collections for school aid will be $264 million short for the fiscal year. Granholm may have to order cuts later this fall that school officials say could amount to reductions of about $300 per student. "Not only has the Legislature kept us in the dark for over a quarter of our fiscal year, now they have passed an underfunded budget," said David Martell, executive director of Michigan School Business Officials. "The House and Senate need to stop playing politics with Michigan's children." The school bill also has: • A 20 percent reduction for intermediate schools and other services to local districts. That's down from the 44 percent cut initially proposed, but it amounts to $16.3 million. • An $8.9 million cut in early childhood programs. That cut mostly affects private preschool. • A 10 percent, or $3 million, cut in vocational education and an 8.3 percent, or $2 million, cut in adult education. • Elimination of $8 million for Granholm's small high schools program.


Go to Next Page
« Previous Topic · Livonia Neighbors Forum · Next Topic »

Pages:
1
2
…
8