Superintendent Renee Foose released a $780.8 million operating budget proposal for the Howard County Public School System Thursday that calls for a 4.2 percent increase in county funding in fiscal year 2016.
During a presentation of her proposed budget to the Howard County Board of Education, Foose said this proposal represents the school system's commitment to sustaining excellence, protecting staff and accelerating growth and advancement for all students.
In her proposal, Foose acknowledges expected budget shortfalls at the county and state levels, but enrollment in the school system is expected to reach an all-time high in the fall.
By next school year, the school system is projecting to see 1,645 new students, bringing total enrollment to 55,330. School system projections show enrollment growth is expected to continue at a similar or higher rate in the future.
The total FY16 budget proposal is $22 million more than FY15, a 2.9 percent increase.
Foose's proposal requests $552.9 million in county funding, nearly $22.5 million more than FY15. The school system is projecting $217.9 million in state funding, an increase of $1.7 million, or .8 percent.
Foose said about half of the $22 million county increase is allocated to the one-time stipend negotiated through arbitration with the teachers union last summer.
There is no placeholder in the FY 2017 budget proposal for salary increases in since the Board of Education and its employee unions are just beginning negotiations.
"Our public schools are a great investment and the engine of economic development in Howard County," Howard County Education Association President Paul Lemle said in a statement. "We're optimistic there is money available in the FY15 budget to fund the agreements we made in good faith last year, and increases in employee health care are unlikely to be as costly as projected."
Now in its second year of using a zero-based budgeting method, school officials say they have identified $20.6 million in savings over the two years. Zero-based budgeting requires departments to start with a blank page instead of using last year's budget numbers when developing budget requests.
Foose said that the system expects zero based budgeting to continue to deliver budget savings in future years.
"While the school system has made great strides in increasing our efficiencies and finding millions of dollars in savings over the last several years, the budget shortfall is affecting each and every county service," Foose said. "We cannot ignore these realities. Instead we must adapt to them in a manner that supports our commitment to sustaining our excellence."
An additional cost savings measure is the early retirement incentive offered to employees with 15 years or more experience with HCPSS.
About 600 employees are expected to participate in the incentive, creating a projected savings of $1.5 million in FY16 and $9.2 million over eight years.
There are no cuts to educational programs in the Superintendent's proposal.
After Foose's presentation, Board of Education Chair Janet Siddiqui called the proposal fiscally sound and cautious in regards to uncertainty in state funding, but one that will move the school system forward.
The school system will host an online feedback forum Jan. 21 and a public hearing Feb. 3 for the community to submit comments on the proposal.
The Board of Education will host a series of work sessions throughout February before submitting the budget to the county executive's office.
A citizens budget guide on Foose's proposal can be found online at www.hcpss.org.