SAN GABRIEL VALLEYWIDE NEWS
Winston Chua

SAN GABRIEL – Bracing themselves for the worst, the San Gabriel School Board met Tuesday night to discuss the next episode in what has been a series of crippling budget cuts to SGUSD. On top of the $2 million in cuts they faced last year, the Governor’s new, proposed budget calls for an additional $1.3 million in cuts. These reductions in education are part of $1 billion in cuts to education Statewide.

“The thing that makes this so unimaginable and horrific is that the $1.3 million is the best case scenario,” said San Gabriel school board member Scott Svonkin. Because very little spending in education is discretionary, SGUSD may have to look for creative approaches in maintaining a balanced budget that seems tough to prepare for. More than 85 percent of budget dollars are fixed in personnel.

In the fiscal year ending in June or 2009, SGUSD increased it’s overall revenue by 6.1 percent, to $55.7 million. However, total expenses also rose, totaling $56.2 million. Administrative activities of the District accounted for 6.6 percent of total costs and education and student care made up 72.6 percent of all programs and services.

“It’s like hitting a moving target. If the school budget is cut another million for San Gabriel, it doesn’t mean that’s what the final budget approved will be,” said board member Scott Svonkin. “It’s like trying to predict the wind or the rain.”

SGUSD, according to Svonkin, may hire newer, cheaper teachers to replace the number who retire. He notes that the crop of quality teachers who may need jobs could be at a high level. Several dozen teachers are eligible for retirement, but increasing class sizes remains an unpopular option.

Additional ways to raise revenue and cut costs also include the possibility of a parcel tax of $100 to $150 to generate school funding or moving graduation ceremonies from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium to Pasadena City College or East Los Angeles College. There is also the idea of fees for extracurricular activities like sports or music.

Should the District need to dip into their revenue, roughly 6 percent of their budget is available. The school board may in the near future go line by line in budget discussions to see if there are ways to find savings.

Last year, Gov. Schwarzenegger signed bills aimed at closing the State’s $23.241 billion shortfall. In Feb. 2009 President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and dedicated more than $11.0 billion over three years for California’s schools, colleges and universities.