PORTLAND — No employees in the city's public schools would be laid off under a $3.3 million mid-year budget adjustment proposed Tuesday by Superintendent Jim Morse.
But more than 70 teachers or other staff members could be laid off next year if the school district loses an anticipated $5 million to $7 million in state aid in 2010-11, Morse said.
Morse developed the budget proposal because the Maine Department of Education is expected to reduce Portland's state aid by about $2.5 million for the fiscal year ending June 30.
Morse views the current budget crisis, expected to unfold when the Legislature reconvenes in January, as a harbinger of greater challenges to come.
"That we won't have to lay off staff this year is nothing short of a miracle," he said Tuesday. "I won't be able to avoid it next year."
Morse plans to deliver his 79-page proposal to the School Committee at 7 tonight in Room 250 at Portland Arts and Technology High School.
The board's finance subcommittee will review the proposal and hold a public hearing on Tuesday. The School Committee will hold a second public hearing and vote on a final budget reduction plan Dec. 2.
"We may vote to move forward with a portion of the plan and wait to hear what the state has to say later in the year before deciding on the rest," said Peter Eglinton, the committee's chairman.
Gov. John Baldacci has asked Education Commissioner Susan Gendron to reduce state funding to schools by $38 million in the fiscal year that ends June 30. In 2010-11, state aid to schools is expected to drop an additional $53 million.
State aid covers nearly $15 million of Portland's $91.3 million school budget this year.
Morse's proposal includes about $2.1 million in budget-cutting options, such as $295,000 for school supplies, equipment and activities, $100,000 for substitute teachers, $100,000 for building maintenance, $400,000 for two staff furlough days, and $89,000 for spring sports.
Morse said he recommended no layoffs because the savings from a mid-year personnel reduction would be minimal. Union contracts require 90 days' notice of layoffs, and the district would have to pay 26 weeks of unemployment benefits for each employee.
Morse's proposal also includes about $1.2 million in new revenue sources that weren't considered when the spending plan was prepared in the spring.
The district will use about $650,000 in federal stimulus money for special education and No Child Left Behind programs to offset local funding, said School Business Manager Herb Hopkins. An additional $600,000 is available because of a recent property tax windfall.
The city recently gave the district about $1 million in property tax revenue that had been withheld in past years when property owners failed to pay their taxes. That infusion erased what remained of a $1.8 million school budget deficit from 2007, and it freed up $600,000 that was set aside in the current budget to cover a portion of the deficit.
Kathleen Casasa, the teachers' union president, said furlough days and a proposed $100,000 reduction in staff reimbursements for college courses would have to be negotiated.
Casasa said she would push for delayed-pay days rather than unpaid days, so staff members could recoup lost wages in future years. However, she noted that school employees are well aware that deeper cuts are coming next year.
"It's very clear that there will be staff reductions," Casasa said. "Depending on how much the city kicks in to offset a reduction in state aid, it is going to have a negative impact on education in Portland."
Maine's largest school district has about 1,200 employees and 7,000 students. A reduction of 70 employees would save about $4 million in salaries and benefits, Hopkins said.
Staff Writer Kelley Bouchard can be contacted at 791-6328 or at: kbouchard@pressherald.com
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