|
 External
Factors
Health insurance costs will grow again,
perhaps by 12% or $700,000, particularly for
prescription drug coverage.
Retirement costs are not expected to grow
significantly, except that under
Governmental Accounting Standards Board
requirements (specifically GASB 45),
BH-BL must start setting aside funds for
long-term medical and retirement liabilities of staff.
Costs for electricity and heat may grow by
8% or $124,000, but this increase would have
been much larger had the district not locked in low electricity rates
until 2010 and low natural gas rates until
2012 by joining a multi-year group
contracts.
 Gasoline
and diesel
costs are projected to rise by 100% or
$230,000. Prices have sky-rocketed
nationally. Consequently we under-budgeted
for these costs in the current year and are
concerned about even higher costs in
2008-09.
State Education Department and State
legislative priorities focus on high-needs
districts rather than average-needs
districts like BH-BL. Thus new state aid
funding is unlikely to benefit us.
Due to many factors beyond the district's
control, tax rate changes for individual
towns can vary widely from the projected
average. Specific town tax rates cannot be
calculated until equalization rates are set
by the state in late August.
Internal
Factors
Our schools continue to develop ways to help
students who are unsuccessful or disengaged
from school. Some of these efforts could add
to the 2008-09 budget.
Long term debt service costs will decline
slightly in the
2008-09 budget.
The Teachers Association contract expires on
June 30, 2008, and a successor contract will
need to be negotiated.
The district is seeking grants and other
non-tax funding to address requests from
staff & community members for a number of
instructional improvements, technology
upgrades and additional security measures.
Unlike many Suburban Council school
districts, BH-BL has very little commercial
development and is 85% residential, making
the challenge of rising costs more
difficult.
|
