Some parents sent me emails about canceled programs at our public school. While I am sitting at the HCPSS 2018 Operating Budget Review Committee, I feel there is a school funding crisis coming soon. The approved budget from the county for FY 2017 is 562 millions, however, the proposed FY 2018 request from the county is 622 millions, which is 10.7% increase, a total of 60 million dollars.
I heard the county government will not be able to fund all 60 million extra dollars over FY 2017, probably at most 7-8 million dollars(hope I am wrong here !). Maybe the zero-based budgeting process should be revisited. Or more programs will but cut, the class size keeps growing, etc.
What is a good budget process and reasonable spending growth? I would like to hear your comments. Or it is how it works: you ask for a huge number and expect you will not get all.
Even with zero based budget process, the school system still needs control the program growth and spending, I dont think the budget plan provides enough details about the spending, so you only got an impression that everything is important and critical, not touchable. I would say donot spend the money you dont have.
A reason why there is not enough money for our public schools is that Gov. Hogan keeps putting more and more money into the state budget bill (this fiscal year it’s House Bill 150) for non-public schools (most of which are religious and thus largely unregulated). This year’s budget bill for FY2018, like last year’s, includes $6,040,000 for textbooks and computer technology in non-public schools. Last year, Hogan managed to get an extra $5 million inserted into the FY2017 budget bill to provide “scholarships” for those attending non-public schools under a program pushed for years called “Broadening Options and Opportunities for Students Today” or BOOST. In the FY2018 budget, the governor is asking that the amount be increased to $6,850,000. In addition to that, he’s requesting more money for these schools in the Capital Budget bill (House Bill 151). For confirmation of the above, see the writeup on this by Lois Hybl in the LWV of Maryland’s “Report from State Circle.”