By JIMMY LAWTON

With budget season well underway for St. Lawrence County school districts and still no aid increase in the proposed state budget, local educators are struggling to make ends meet.

“Traditionally, when the governor’s executive budget is released in January, it is accompanied by state aid runs which indicates to schools how the funding will be distributed,” said Potsdam Central School Superintendent Patrick Brady. “This would include state monies allocated toward transportation, special education, BOCES services, and general operating aid.”

But this year, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo chose to tie funding to legislative approval of far-reaching education reforms and withhold state aid runs unless these reforms were enacted. In recent years, the state aid runs have also signaled how money will be apportioned in the Foundation Aid formula or to reduce the Gap Elimination Adjustment.

“This lack of basic budget information made it very challenging for school districts to develop an accurate budget and engage the community to plan for the upcoming year,” said Brady. “Many assumptions needed to be made and plans developed if we were to receive no increase in aid as was threatened by the governor.”

3 Scenarios Planned

In Canton, Superintendent William Gregory said his district may create three budgets in order to prepare for the unknown.

“We will likely develop three budget scenarios,” he said. “Worst-case, assuming no increase over our current level of state aid, a best case, assuming complete restoration of the Gap Elimination Adjustment and some additional level of Foundation Aid; and a "most likely" scenario somewhere between the two.”

The 2015-16 budget for Potsdam Central School shows a budget gap of $205,921 at this time, according to Brady, who said the figure assumes a 2.9 percent tax levy increase and the use of $2.2 million in fund balance.

“If we do not receive building aid for our capital project the shortfall would grow an additional $625,844,” he said. “We continue to urge our legislators to fight to end the GEA and develop an equitable funding formula so our schools can be properly funded and our students can have the quality education they deserve.”

In Ogdensburg, School District Superintendent Timothy Vernsey says the district is also looking at committing $2.5 million in fund balance to close a budget gap. He said the district can’t look at cutting positions because there is no where left to cut.

“Not having state aid figures to craft a budget is especially difficult for districts that rely most heavily on state aid. Districts are only left with the choice to cut expenses or use fund balance to balance the budget,” he said.

“Since a state aid increase such as the one that was received last year may represent upwards of $500,000 or more there is no way a district can trim that much from the budget after years of already cutting the expense side of the budget. Using a decreasing fund balance is the only option to maintaining a sound basic educational program.”

The problem for Ogdensburg and other districts is that using fund balance isn’t sustainable.

Assemblywoman Expects Increase

Typically, schools use the governor’s budget proposal as a working point for crafting budgets, but this year Cuomo has proposed tying $1.1 billion in school aid increases to his education reforms, including teacher evaluations.

The reforms have been met with harsh criticism from the public, teachers unions and the state Assembly.

Despite the grim news, North Country Assemblywoman Addie Russell, D-Theresa, says she expects an increase in school aid in the final budget.

“I think meeting the deadline is a possibility. We are continuing to push back against the unworkable proposal put forward by the governor,” said Russell. Her “River District” includes all St. Lawrence County communities along the St. Lawrence Seaway as well as Potsdam and Canton.

Russell says Cuomo’s budget hurts schools, as it presents no increase in foundation aid or reduction in the Gap Elimination Adjustment.

She said schools have been forced to craft budgets on these numbers, even though they are not likely realistic. However, in recent weeks she said the governor seems willing to talk. Recently, it has been reported Cuomo is willing to remove some key demands from his budget, including the Dream Act and a measure that would have kept teenagers from facing prison time.

Russell says she would like to see the GEA eliminated completely and wants a major increase in foundation aid. She said she will not support a budget that does not provide aid to the schools that need it most.

“There will need to be an aid increase or I will be voting no. I think we are looking at an aid increase that is even higher than $1.8 billion that has been proposed,” she said. “I hope we will do better than that. I hope we will be able to push back against the proposed reforms.”

The Assembly has proposed a spending plan that would provide $25 billion in total school aid, about $1.8 billion more than the previous year, but that budget was not supported by the senate or Gov. Cuomo.

Russell said she thinks the GEA will remain in the budget this year, but is hopeful it can be substantially reduced for needy districts.

“I am not sure that the governor is willing to agree to that substantial increase in aid, but I would like to at least eliminate it for the neediest schools this year,” she said.

The districts most in need of state aid tend to be in low income and rural areas like St. Lawrence County.

Russell said she has support from downstate colleagues in helping provide aid to needy districts.

“I am pushing for an on-time budget, because I know how important these numbers are for schools. We are all hoping we can get this done.”