蜜桃影视

School board members have approved L.A. Unified鈥檚 latest budget, even though the district is still far from being financially sustainable.

The revised聽聽lays out the district鈥檚 response to county concerns about聽, inadequate reserve levels and reliance on non-guaranteed funds to keep itself afloat in coming years. But instead of providing clarity, the latest budget highlighted the district鈥檚 deepening reliance on new funding sources as it struggles to correct its ballooning deficit and to meet future minimum reserve requirements that could shield it from a聽.

The plan, presented to the board on Tuesday, offered the first in-depth look at L.A. Unified鈥檚 budget since the district settled its new teachers contract in January. That contract came with an聽聽price tag through 2021, stemming largely from teacher salary raises, class size reductions and support staff hires, such as counselors and nurses.

The fiscal plan passed 4-1, with one abstention, and was sent to county overseers by Tuesday鈥檚 deadline for review. The county has until April 15 to provide a response, a spokeswoman confirmed Wednesday.

Beyond already-announced聽聽to the central office, Tuesday鈥檚 report outlined few other guaranteed cost cuts. Rather, Chief Financial Officer Scott Price emphasized to the school board that 鈥渨e need to increase revenues.鈥� L.A. Unified continues to bank on projected new state revenue and local initiatives like a parcel tax 鈥� which will be聽聽this June and which just received聽聽from the L.A. City Council 鈥� to breathe life into the budget.

鈥淚 would like to know the amount coming from the governor. I鈥檇 like to know the results of the parcel tax鈥� before giving approval, said District 3 board member Scott Schmerelson, who cast the sole 鈥渘o鈥� vote. District 1鈥檚 George McKenna chose to abstain.

Price鈥檚 presentation Tuesday highlighted the frustratingly volatile nature of budgets, District 7 board member Richard Vladovic said, at one point waving the budget documents in the air.

鈥淲e鈥檙e asked to plan for three years, account for three years, with one year of sure money and nothing else,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd we can only hope and dream it comes true.鈥�

鈥淰ery much鈥� the same thing

Fundamentally, Tuesday鈥檚 fiscal report and stabilization plan 鈥渧ery much is the same thing鈥� as the one L.A. Unified submitted to the county聽, Price told reporters Monday.

A few findings:

1 The 1 percent reserve remains unmet, according to Price.

California districts are required to have a reserve for economic emergencies each year that amounts to at least 1 percent of their total expenditures. But the latest budget, which by law has to include projections for the current fiscal year as well as two years out, forecasts a 0.96 percent reserve in 2020-21. December鈥檚 budget projections showed the same percentage. L.A. Unified is about $3.1 million 鈥渂elow the 1 percent reserve,鈥� Price told the board Tuesday.

The district 鈥渦sed $75 million of one-time central office carryover funds to get to the 2020-21 reserve of .96%,鈥� a spokeswoman explained in an email on Wednesday.

The district鈥檚 minimum reserve level plays a large role in whether the county decides to install a fiscal adviser, county Superintendent of Schools Debra Duardo聽聽LA School Report in January. A聽聽would have 鈥渟tay and rescind power,鈥� meaning he or she could rewrite budgets and overturn school board decisions.

2 The latest report doesn鈥檛 appear to remedy the county鈥檚 continuing concerns over L.A. Unified鈥檚 deficit spending.

Not taking into account potential future revenues, L.A. Unified is projecting a deficit in 2021-22 that is $749 million below the 1 percent reserve, Price said Monday. (Deficit spending means the district is spending more than it鈥檚 taking in.) The new estimate is nearly 50 percent above the $506 million deficit previously projected. Price noted Tuesday that along with the district鈥檚 new union contract obligations,聽聽of more than 12,000 students a year continues to cause L.A. Unified substantial financial strain.

鈥淲e will need [another] fiscal stabilization plan鈥� in the coming months 鈥渂ecause of the deficit that we have in that 2021-22 year,鈥� Price told board members Tuesday. 鈥淲e know that we鈥檙e going to have to look for increased revenues, and we鈥檙e working on that.鈥�

More budget projections on the 2021-22 year will be available come June, when the district reveals its 2019-20 budget.

3 So 鈥斅燾uts?

When asked Monday about cuts to the budget, Price highlighted the $85.8 million in savings the district plans to receive from central office reductions over a two-year span, which was already included in the December plan.

There are other cost-saving measures not included in the fiscal plan that the district is pursuing, Price added: a three-year聽聽on the teacher-administrator ratio penalty that would save $105 million, continuing 鈥渆fficiencies or reductions in costs鈥� efforts that could save $100 million and potential real estate sales or leasing opportunities that could generate $100 million.

The district spokeswoman clarified in an email that those听鈥�efficiencies鈥� could include contracting 鈥渢hrough other government agencies with large vendors instead of buying directly from manufacturers or smaller vendors.鈥�

鈥淭he district is taking steps toward greater fiscal responsibility,鈥� Board District 4鈥檚 Nick Melvoin wrote in a statement to LA School Report on Tuesday. 鈥淭he reality remains that we are an underfunded school district that needs to simultaneously grow the pie while working to cut bureaucracy and get more caring adults on campuses.鈥�

District 6 board member Kelly Gonez on Tuesday noted that the central office reductions extend to the local districts, and she asked Price if some of those cuts could be reconsidered depending on the breadth of new funding. 鈥淥ur local districts do a lot of really important work. My principals tell me all the time how valuable those supports are,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o I hope that if some of these additional savings are realized, we can spare the local districts from those cuts.鈥�

Price also confirmed Monday that Local Control Funding Formula monies explicitly set aside for targeted student populations 鈥� low-income youth, English language learners and foster youth 鈥� have not been compromised as the district tries to rein in its budget.

Reliance on new money

The biggest addition to the budget from last December was the teachers contract agreement 鈥渢o invest more in lowering class sizes and increasing the numbers of librarians, counselors and nurses,鈥� Price told reporters Monday. And that comes with finding a way to pay for it.

Officials have repeatedly emphasized that new revenue is vital for the district鈥檚 solvency. Price re-upped that call this week, citing the 鈥渘ecessity鈥� of a parcel tax that鈥檚 now on the June 4 ballot.聽, if approved by at least two-thirds of voters, would enact a districtwide $0.16 per square foot tax 鈥� a tax of聽聽for an owner of a 1,500-square-foot home, for example. This would generate $400 million to $500 million annually starting in the 2019-20 year: about聽聽for district schools, and the rest going to independent charter schools.

鈥淢easure EE is critical to really opening up conversation 鈥� [about] the potential investment in schools, rather than having to deal with the year-to-year 鈥榯hird-year鈥� conversation鈥� that is consistently foreshadowing doom and gloom, Price told reporters Monday.

When asked by a reporter if 鈥渨e鈥檇 be OK in 2021-22鈥� if the parcel tax passes, Price responded, 鈥淵es.鈥�

Seth Litt, executive director of the advocacy group聽, says he鈥檇 support new measures like a parcel tax, but he needs to see more transparency and clearer goals for the funding. 鈥淚t鈥檚 crucial that there鈥檚 a sense of transparency, that these things are not happening in the dark 鈥� and that there鈥檚 a real vision for how the money is spent to improve student outcomes,鈥� he said.

On how the updated plan improves student outcomes, Price cited the benefit of lowering class sizes and adding staff such as nurses, librarians and counselors.

Melvoin told board members last month that a parcel tax 鈥渨ill only pass if we can convince the community that we can do more with the money, and do so transparently and thoughtfully.鈥� In that spirit, the tax would 鈥渋nclude an oversight plan so that voters can continue to hold the district accountable for spending our money more wisely,鈥� he wrote Tuesday in a statement to LA School Report.

While it鈥檚 premature for a parcel tax to be incorporated into district budgeting, L.A. Unified officials did include some new projected revenue from Gov. Gavin Newsom鈥檚聽: a $44 million bump thanks to a projected cost-of-living adjustment and $48 million in pension relief over two years. County overseers have聽cautioned聽against 鈥渞elying on this projected revenue since the Governor鈥檚 2019-20 Budget is not yet finalized.鈥�

Price acknowledged Tuesday that 鈥渨e don鈥檛 know until June what we will be getting from the state specifically.鈥� He added: 鈥淸We鈥檙e] watching the dynamics that are happening with the revenue that comes into the state right now.鈥�

Only two members of the public spoke on the district鈥檚 finances at Tuesday鈥檚 board meeting. One was active L.A. Unified parent Maria Daisy Ort铆z, who expressed frustration that the district continues to budget behind closed doors with minimal parent engagement. Including her comments, the presentation of the fiscal plan and board discussion took about a half-hour of the four-hour-long meeting.

When asked Monday whether the county would accept the updated plan, Price said L.A. Unified officials 鈥渁re in constant communication with the county office鈥� and are continuing to collaborate with a fiscal advisory team that the county聽聽in January.

That team 鈥渉asn鈥檛 suggested doing anything different than what鈥檚 in the fiscal stabilization plan up to this point,鈥� Price said. 鈥淭he county has its sights on beyond the 鈥�20-21 school year 鈥� just as we鈥檙e looking at that too.鈥�

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