Gov. Proposes Deep Cuts for K-12 Education; Everything, from Coaches' Salaries to Breakfast, On the Table

By Amber Lester Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Governor Bob McDonnell confirmed the fears and predictions of area school administrators when he unveiled his plan to cut about $731 million in K-12 education funding.

McDonnell announced his proposed amendments to former Gov. Tim Kaine’s introduced budget at a Wednesday morning press conference. In a letter sent to the General Assembly, McDonnell wrote, “Significant additional spending reduction will be necessary to balance the budget, above the $2 billion already proposed by Governor Kaine for the next biennium.” The state budget shortfall is expected to be $4 billion. Read more about Kaine’s proposal here.

Many of the cuts would reduce spending for nearly everything except instruction. Some of the items that could be cut include coaches’ stipends, school breakfast initiatives, funds to lease or rent space, support for travel and replacing buses. Every amendment’s description says, “This amendment does not impact state funding support provided for instructional services.”

The biggest reduction – $225 million – would come from delaying base funding updates. These updates are normally used to establish the costs of updating the Standards of Quality in the beginning of a biennium. The Standards of Quality establish the minimum of programming provided by each school division; the SOQ is funded by the state and matched by the locality. A locality can spend more than the required amount. More than 80 percent of SOQ funding is for salaries and benefits, according to the Virginia Department of Education.

Delaying the base year updates would level support costs to the same funding received in Fiscal Year 2010. Support personnel costs, nonpersonal costs, pupil transportation and costs associated with superintendents, school boards and school nurses would not be updated as planned.

Under McDonnell’s proposal, supplemental salaries would be cut, saving the state $130 million. Currently, supplemental salaries pay for some coaches, club sponsors and others. Coaching stipends typically fall between $800 and $3,000; Williamsburg-James City County’s Warhill High School is hiring for a head volleyball coach to be paid $2,506.

McDonnell also proposes eliminating some programs currently supported by the Lottery fund. The programs include Enrollment Loss ($17.5 million), Mentor Teacher ($2 million), School Breakfast ($5.3 million) and additional support for construction and operating costs ($67 million).

While school breakfast programming is federally funded, Virginia does contribute to the program. In Virginia, school breakfast is required in public schools with 25 percent or more students qualifying for free and reduced meals. In 2006, the state established an incentive program to increase student participation. The state reimburses schools who served more students than the baseline established in 2003-2004, according to the Food Research and Action Center.

The proposal also calls for decreasing funding for add-on payments for students who are educationally at-risk. By changing the funding methodology, the state would save $41.5 million over two years in add-on payments.

McDonnell’s proposal would remove some costs from the Standards of Quality. He suggests the SOQ be calculated without including funds for nonpersonal facility support (a savings of $31.8 million), lease and rental support ($31.6 million) and travel support ($29 million). In other words, schools would no longer receive state funding to rent trailers or office space. He also suggests letting buses run the roads for 15 years before being replaced; currently, SOQ recommends buses be replaced after 12 years.

McDonnell’s amendments also add two spending proposals to Kaine’s introduced budget. First, he wants to allow the routine update to the local composite index that determines a locality’s ability to pay for its schools. The update will benefit Northern Virginia schools, but would hurt Hampton Roads divisions; WJCC could lose $2.3 million in state funding and York County could lose just under $700,000.

Second, he wants to authorize issuance of $55 million of debt to pay for technological equipment in schools. Technology Equipment notes would be issued in 2011 and 2012; the state would fund debt service to the tune of $13.5 million starting in 2012.

Higher Education and Museum Cuts
In his amendments, McDonnell acknowledged higher education has already received a 26 percent reduction in the last two years, forcing many colleges and universities to raise tuition and fees. Still, his proposal would reduce another $273 million of funding associated with higher education.

First, the Tuition Assistance Grant (TAG) Program would provide funds only to students eligible for financial aid. TAG is designed to assist Virginia residents who attend private colleges and universities for programs other than religious training or theology. Currently, TAG eligibility is not restricted to students who qualify for financial aid; the maximum annual award for an undergrad is $3,000.

The proposal also eliminates funding for the Eminent Scholars Program, designed to attract and retain scholars at colleges and universities. Cutting its funding would save the state $6.8 million. The State Council of Higher Education would also see its funding reduced by $1.5 million through reorganization, reductions, efficiencies and program elimination in FY 2012.

Finally, Virginia’s museums and cultural entities would be reduced by $13.8 million. The proposed reductions to general operations would result in a 15 percent reduction to each entity, except the Virginia Commission for the Arts, which would lose 26 percent. Colonial Williamsburg does not receive state funds, but the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation that runs the Jamestown Settlement and Yorktown Victory Center is a state agency and would see state funding erode further.