School Committee - Finance Subcommittee

EASTHAMPTON SCHOOL COMMITTEE FINANCE SUBCOMMITTEE MEETING (Tuesday) February 9, 2021 School Department – zoom only 4:00 p.m. Meeting Notes Attended by: Allison LeClair, Dayle Doiron, Jonathan Schmidt, Marin Goldstein, Shannon Dunham, and Cynthia Kwiecinski 4:03pm Open the meeting I. Public Speak II. EPSD Operating Budget overview, 2021/2022 (FY22) a. Budget format review b. Budget versus level funding plan c. Enrollment projection  Built incremental review over the weeks of meetings  Projection on School numbers – moderate drop due to COVID losses and soft numbers, may rise – by comparison – modest increment in past years  PreK and K numbers are still soft due to Spring City census  Budget timeline – Mayor and Superintendent – FY22 not required; FY23 budget submitted by March 1; state aid numbers don’t come out until late Feb and with election year – formation of committees may be delayed; many factors unknown, e.g vocational students (applications not in until April 1st), City council – not discuss budget until April meetings  Enrollment – 2020-21, lost of 70 students (drop of 6.4% in students) o Chapter 70 $ is figured on the Oct 1st calculations; conversations with State Rep in order to discuss options for flexibility (use March 1st, 2020), but State expressing unlikely = FY21 up ~$41,000 even with drop in student #s  Cut 2.5% = $450,000 cuts or reserve to cover this amount  Budgeting based on salaries have a lot of implications: no COLA because we budgeted 2% in FY21, but due to no contract and unlikely to settle, guessing it won’t be retroactive. This assumes the budget total of FY21 and FY22 must not be higher than 2% increase. o Range of salary: making assumption of 2% max in both FY21 and FY22, but may need to adjust as the numbers as we get further into the process  Roughly increases $250,000 increasing in the budgets based on salary increases; then we will likely to have to find $700,000 in total to achieve -2.5%  COVID is impacting the actual spending amounts – not a pattern to plan on III. Center/Pepin Budget, 2021/2022 (FY22)  No increase or decrease in staff  Staffing changes = replacements were either more or less costly; or due to Step changes  Clerical – budgeted in FY21 increase in the teacher line, so now adding to their line; also one to longevity  Administrators – no increase in FY22. The variance is based on the increase, but the teacher salary line held these increases from FY21. Therefore, it is not an increase in FY22.  o Administrators held salary increases FY21 late, but retroactive. Then FY22, roughly 3 have built in % and will have to be asked to take 0. Allison wants to build some increase still for administrators – tbd. o Dayle- consistency, same assumption 2% for all staff, in both FY21 and FY22. But some minor adjustments based on staff loss = salary savings. COVID will increase attrition in FY22, high exhaustion. But Cyndy thinks in-person will be easier and less likely in drop because hoping for end of year and next year will be fully in person.  Lunchroom – min wage increasing (July $13.50; Jan ’22 $14.25) so salary increase  LANE/STEP increases  Para use across building increases and deceases mostly balance out; however negotiation will likely raise the floor price ($15.72-$17.89 baseline, with based on step schedule)  CURRENT – increase $34,846 IV. Maple Operating Budget, 2022/2022 (FY22)  Same Principal, clerical, and teachers – all anticipated step/lane and same % as above  Supplies – decrease and increases are balanced (principal, staff devo, textbooks, supplies) Future reviews? WMBS change over mid-year in FY22, but hard to predict savings – staff contracted for full year TBD WBMS and EHS to send out on ideally EOB Thursday, Feb 11th. Upcoming Budget Subcommittee Meetings a. Tuesday, February 16, 2021 i. WBMS ii. EHS b. Tuesday, February 23, 2021 i. Special Education ii. System/District c. Tuesday, March 2, 2021 i. Review Entire Operating budget d. Tuesday, March 9, 2021 (if needed) i. Final Review Entire Operating budget e. Full School Committee review – Tuesday, March 23rd V. Other Business: VI. Adjournment: Finance Subcommittee Members, 2021-2022: Marin Goldstein, Chair Cynthia Kwiecinski Jonathan Schmidt