The Rhinelander Daily News - Online news and information for the Rhinelander, Wisconsin region

The Rhinelander School Board’s Operations and Strategic Planning Committee meeting on Monday night provided a first glimpse at the budget cuts that will define the 2008-09 school year operating budget.

Superintendent Roger Erdahl responded to numerous questions from committee members and community members as the action items were discussed, emphasizing that the cuts were necessitated by the failure of the April 1 referendum.

“I think that Northern Wisconsin school boards have done a great job keeping their operating costs down. What many residents do not fully understand is that because of the state aid formula in Wisconsin, each year taxpayers are shouldering a larger percentage of the burden for our operating costs,” Erdahl said.

The most notable action item on the agenda was a proposed 10 percent drawdown of individual building budgets that would save the school district $50,000 but would also directly affect classroom instructors. The committee voted against the drawdown, explaining it wanted to see a proposal of alternative methods for saving the $50,000.

Another notable action item was a proposed withdrawal of $700,000 from the school district’s fund balance to help finance building maintenance and other operational costs. The motion passed unanimously and will be voted on by the full school board next Monday.

Community member Gail Winnie expressed dismay at the passage of the motion, citing that five-year budget projections distributed at the meeting showed the elimination of the fund balance by the 2010-11 school year.

The debate during the question and answer sessions was at times lively, as school board and community members expressed their opinions about the budget that will be the focus during next Monday’s school board meeting.

“I have been on the school board for ten years and we have had to make cuts eight of those years. We are looking at the destruction of education in Northern Wisconsin. What I would like to see is the media saying it’s a problem,” said school board president Chuck Fitzgerald.

Erdahl and Fitzgerald have increasingly drawn attention the failure of Wisconsin’s state aid funding formula to adequately finance schools in rural Northern Wisconsin districts.

The state aid funding formula was changed in 1993.

According to the formula, the amount the state contributes to a school district’s operating budget depends upon the rate of change of property taxes from the baseline set in 1993 and the rate of change of enrollment. Because the Rhinelander School District enrollment area continues to see an increase in property taxes as it experiences an enrollment drop, the state contributes less money each year to the operating budget and the taxpayers contribute more.

The budget forecasts submitted by the district’s business service office paint a bleak picture should the current trends in revenues and expenditures continue. Next Monday the full board will have its first chance to review the budget numbers and board members will take the first steps toward balancing next year’s budget without sacrificing the quality of education in Rhinelander.

Tell us what you think...

Comments »

James Hamele130 E Anderson st Rhinelander wrote on Sep 20, 2008 8:45 PM:

" It appears the referendum has a chance in November. Should it pass, does the board have a legal obligation to engage in an open proposal/bidding process to determine which financial firm is awarded the contract to manage financing of the district's funding?? "

mark ptak wrote on May 14, 2008 5:34 AM:

" Let's face it. All school money is from taxes. I think the statement should have said...Local Property Tax Payers are increasingly bearing the burden.

Stevens Point "

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