Elwood Citizens Finance Committee Makes Recommendations

The Citizens Finance Budget Advisory Committee, whose mission is to provide a comprehensive analysis and accurate cost accounting of existing programs in the Elwood School District, presented several ideas to Trustees and the general public at the Feb. 16 Board meeting. A PDF of the presentation is attached to this article.

Committee Chairperson Ken Rubin said that the group looked at several areas, including the food service program, transportation costs, use of facilities, and extending the district’s current three-year plan to five years.

Among the recommendations offered to Board members was the suggestion that direct overhead costs such as water, electric, and administrative expenses be allocated to the Food Service Program rather than the General Fund. Lunch prices at all schools could be raised by $.25 in 2012-2013 to generate an additional $50,000 to offset the direct overhead allocations, with the money in the General Fund utilized for other purposes.

Current government reimbursement per meal is $2.50, with the mandate that meals paid for by students must be equal to or greater than this reimbursement in the next few years. Lunch prices in the Elwood district are currently much lower than prices charged in neighboring districts such as Northport and Harborfields.

Board VP Dan Ciccone took that idea one step further, suggesting that the price of la carte items, as well as the types of choices being offered, be looked at as well. 

Since state law no longer requires that districts provide a seat on a bus for every student, regardless of whether the seat is actually used, the CFBAC proposed consolidating bus stops and extending routes to provide better efficiency. Approximately 1,600 students in the district take a bus; reducing the current number of buses from 16 to 15 would result in a $60,000 savings.

A longer term suggestion was to explore consolidation of bus service with neighboring districts for private and parochial students. Options might include shared runs and central pick-up and drop-off locations. The committee recommended establishing alliances with vendors and other districts to enhance leverage in the RFP process.

Board members discussed the idea of offering parents an “opt-out” to get a better idea of the true number of students who actually need to take a bus.  Assistant Superintendent of Business William Pastore and Superintendent Peter Scordo didn’t think there was an opt-out scenario offered by the state but said they would consult district counsel to see if the idea was legal.

As for extending bus routes and requiring that students walk further to stops, Scordo cited safety concerns and said he didn’t think the idea would go over well with parents.

Using facilities to generate revenue was another idea offered up for discussion by the committee.  The group recommended that the Board evaluate renting available indoor and outdoor space to include non-501(c)(3) organizations. A subcommittee will perform a cost/benefit analysis.

Ciccone noted that renting only to 501(c)(3)s is part of district policy which would need to be changed in order to allow inclusion of private entities.

District policy dictates that Elwood operate under a three-year plan but the CFBAC recommended extending it to five years.  Taking into account the two percent tax cap, year-by-year expenditures and no mandate relief,  the group estimated that the fund balance, or the “rainy day” fund, as it is more commonly known, will be exhausted in approximately four years. The group will undertake an extensive analysis of varied state aid scenarios and mandates which have the greatest impact on budgets over the long term.