MNPS Budget Process and Recap
The first look at the draft budget for the 2023-2024 school year was at the 3-28-23 MNPS Board of Ed meeting. Before we get into the highlights, here's a quick breakdown of how the budget works:
Dr. Battle presents a budget to the School Board members, which includes the "Continuity of Operations" costs (the amount that is AT LEAST the same as last year's contribution, which is required by state law) and an "Aspirational Budget" (essentially, a menu of investments she would "like" to fund).
The School Board Members discuss the budget and vote to approve Dr. Battle's "suggested budget". Sometimes, the Board Members make slight changes to the proposal, but most commonly, they pass the budget proposed by Dr. Battle.
The Mayor will deliver his State of Metro address by the end of April. He will outline his budget priorities, which sometimes echo those of the Board, but not always. For instance, he announced that he would fund paid family leave last year, even though it wasn't a high priority in the Board budget.
City Council will draft a budget concurrently with the Mayor's budget. There are many overlaps between the two, but the Council budget often contains amendments that help fund areas not prioritized in the Mayor's budget.
City Council will discuss the budget proposals throughout May and June and a vote will take place to finalize the 23-24 budget by the end of June. This budget will outline the amount MNPS will receive from the city, but it won't necessarily specify HOW all the money needs to be used. They will often indicate certain amounts SHOULD go to certain line items.
The School Board Members will make final decisions on how to allocate the money before the next school year.
This is a lot of information, but it's helpful to know how our budget is set. A couple conclusions to draw: 1) By creating a "suggested budget," the School Board and Dr. Battle place the responsibility of deciding which additional lines to fund on the Mayor and City Council. 2) The Mayor and City Council really have the ULTIMATE influence on whether our budget demands are met.
Onto the budget presentation from Tuesday, 3-28-23...
Step raises for certificated, support, and nutrition staff are included in the “Continuity of Operations” budget, which means they WILL be funded. Those of you who have been in the district for a while know it’s a huge deal that we don’t have to fight for step raises every year anymore since we negotiated them into the MOU!
No indications were made on Cost-of-Living Adjustments (COLA), other than the cost per percentage: 1% COLA = $5,720,600. This number is usually provided to give sticker shock, but we KNOW the national cost of living adjustment is 8%.
As far as compensation priorities (which are on the “Aspirational Budget”), Dr. Battle’s list included:
Administrative Pay Plan
Paid Veterans Day
Recruitment Incentives
Bereavement Leave*
Longevity Pay
Classification Study
*A quick note about Bereavement Leave: In 2021, the MNEA PECCA team negotiated expanded bereavement leave as part of the MOU, but the district never allotted money to fund this. This line item would be to fund that expansion and be in alignment with the MOU.
Notably missing from the compensation priorities is increasing day-to-day sub pay. This is the tactic the district has not tried as a means of attracting more subs. Meanwhile, every other classification has received salary increases over the last few years. There is a note on the “Aspirational Budget” to fund building subs, but that doesn’t address the sheer lack of subs we have in our buildings.
There were also slides that included things the district wants to continue to fund once ESSER funds sunset in September 2024, and “New Funding Strategies”.
Again, because of the way the budgeting process is structured, nothing outside of the “Continuity of Operations” budget is guaranteed.
To see the whole budget presentation, click here: Budget Document
The following is a list of upcoming community budget meetings that are open to the public; all will be from 5-7 p.m. CST:
March 29, Northwest Community Budget Meeting, Whites Creek High School
March 30, Southeast Community Budget Meeting, Cane Ridge Elementary School
April 4, Northeast Community Budget Meeting, DuPont Hadley Middle School
April 10, Southwest Community Budget Meeting, Hillsboro High School
The School Board Members will discuss and vote on a budget at the April 11th meeting.