Yellow Pages
ANACORTES — Anacortes School Board members unanimously agreed Thursday to make many small cuts to the district’s 2008-2009 district budget and to lower its cash reserve as a last resort.
The cuts include immediate freezes on all district-paid field trips, hires and nonessential operating costs as well as a freeze on 20 percent of all building budgets. Energy saving measures, the postponement of a bus purchase and a reduction in summer maintenance rounded out the list.
The board also voted to reduce its cash reserve by $140,000 — 0.5 percent — if necessary.
Board members said the financial crisis, due to a lower-than-expected student enrollment, warranted such drastic measures.
“We can’t spend money we don’t have, and that’s the situation this year,” said board member Kris Lytton. “We all need to tighten our belts.”
This latest round of cuts adds $150,000 to $260,000 to the $950,000 in cuts that happened earlier this year.
Lytton said it was especially hard for her to approve the use of reserve funds, but it had to be done.
“This is an emergency,” Lytton said. “Our economy is the worst it’s been since the Great Depression.”
Board member Mitch Everton agreed with the suggestions.
“It will be difficult this year,” he said. “You cannot continue to fund recurring revenue shortfalls out of cash reserves.”
Districts across the state have struggled to keep up with underfunded requirements from the state and federal government. This past summer, many districts reached a tipping point when trying to pay for the unfunded portion of state-mandated cost-of-living increases.
Superintendent Chris Borgen said there will not be a reduction in force as a result of Thursday’s vote. The cuts should cover the district’s revenue shortfall for the rest of the year, he said.
“We’re going to continue to provide a high-quality education and trying to keep the cuts away from the classroom as much as possible,” Borgen said.
In June when the district was crafting this school year’s budget, the district made $500,000 in cuts. Then again in September, the board authorized another $450,000 reduction after it became apparent that the enrollment had fallen short by almost 70 students from what was predicted earlier in the year. The district has seen about 18 more students attending in October than last month.
* Kate Martin can be reached at 360-416-2145 or at kmartin @skagitvalleyherald.com.
