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Budget glitch leads to review
By ROBERT KING © St. Petersburg Times, published October 8, 2000 BROOKSVILLE -- The school district is conducting a massive review of its 2000-01 budget to determine whether a $5.7-million discrepancy is merely a paperwork boo-boo or a grievous error that could be remedied only by massive mid year budget cuts. As the review continues, Superintendent John Sanders has ordered a halt to overtime pay and strict limits on new hiring and purchasing that come close to an all-out freeze. The austerity measures were quietly enacted about three weeks ago in response to a discovery by new finance director Sara Perez. She found a "significant" gap between the paper version of the budget approved by the School Board on Sept. 7 and a working version of the budget that exists in the computer in the district's finance office. Perez and other district officials caution that no money is missing. But the discrepancy, unless reconciled, would mean that the school district is set up to spend nearly $6-million more than it is scheduled to take in this year. The paper budget approved by the School Board on Sept. 7 covered $173.3-million in total revenues and expenses. The discrepancies lie in the $88.2-million part of that budget set aside for the district's day-to-day operations. To get a true picture of the district's spending, Sanders gave Perez permission to conduct a line-by-line review of the budget with every principal and department head in the district. That review is expected to continue into November. Already, after visits to four sites, Perez said she has found several discrepancies between the paper budget and the computer budget. "My first concern is which set of numbers is the accurate numbers," Perez said. Until that's done, the school district is pulling its belt tighter than ever. All new material and equipment purchases made from the district's operating budget are being closely scrutinized. Only those that are vital are being approved. Vacant jobs are being left open indefinitely except for those positions that directly affect the classroom or are required by law, such as teachers and some special education teacher aides. At least two newly created jobs -- an expert to analyze student achievement test results and a coach to shepherd new or struggling special education teachers -- will go unfilled for the time being. "I don't know yet that it has had a great impact on anybody," said Edd Poore, the district's personnel director. "If it stays for two or three months, it probably will." Overtime pay has been limited to only those spots where one worker is covering more than one position because of vacancies in vital jobs. That has had a direct impact on schools still waiting on new portable classrooms to be set up to relieve crowding. Crews that hook the portables up to water, power and electricity or who construct the wooden steps and wheelchair ramps leading to them would otherwise be able to work extra time to get the portables ready sooner. District officials hope they can loosen up the austerity measures once Perez clears up the problem. But if the discrepancies cannot be reconciled, the cost-cutting efforts might have to last the entire year or even be stiffened. Sanders said he expects that the books can be painlessly reconciled. He hopes the gap might simply be due to differences between the budgeting styles of Perez and her predecessor, Vince Benedict. Benedict, who was credited by Sanders and members of the board with improving the district's finances, has been battling cancer for the past year. He retired this summer so he could concentrate on his health. But that meant the summer budgeting process had to be put on fast forward. Perez came aboard in July. But she didn't really get the reins of the finance department until after the budget was complete in September. For most of the summer, Benedict split time between home and the office. When he appeared at the School Board's final budget hearing Sept. 7, Benedict joked about how difficult the work had been since his doctors had started pumping Drano into his veins -- a reference to the chemotherapy. Benedict could not be reached Friday for comment. Before the glitch came to light, Benedict was predicting that the 2000-01 budget would be tight, in part because of the skyrocketing cost of employee health insurance. He warned that the School Board would have to keep a close eye on the budget throughout the year. Officials caution that no one is talking yet about layoffs. And Perez thinks that even a worst-case scenario -- where $5.7-million has to be cut from the budget -- could be handled without firings. "We don't want to spread panic in the ranks. It's not something you get out there with a bullhorn and say the ship is sinking," School Board Chairman Jim Malcolm said. "I would reassure people that the ship isn't sinking." Malcolm said he considers the austerity measures that Sanders has enacted to be prudent. "I rather look at his management decisions as playing it safe," Malcolm said. "Don't spend it until you are sure you've got it."
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
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