Schools

5-Year Forecast Shows Schools $18 Million Down Without Levy, $10 Million Ahead if it Passes

But revenue is so iffy, things could change next year, treasurer says

Strongsville Schools Treasurer Bill Parkinson laid out his five-year financial forecast for the district, but made it clear that his projections could be turned upside-down by state legislators.

"We know that this is likely to change," Parkinson told school board members May 5. 

He said Gov. John Kasich is looking for a new funding formula for schools, which could drastically alter what Strongsville and other districts receive from the state.

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"Who knows what funding will be in 2013 and beyond?" Parkinson said. "So I took (state revenue) next year and flatlined it."

That  conservative approach leaves Strongsville schools $18 million in the red by the end of 2015, unless voters approve a 6.9-mill levy this year. 

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If the levy is approved, the district could see a healthy $10 million carryover in 2015.

This year's carryover is estimated at $600,000, which officials said is woefully low.

Parkinson sounded the alarm again on a potential state takeover that would start with the district being placed under "fiscal caution" and then "fiscal watch" -- conditions reached when the projected deficit is at least 2 percent and 8 percent, respectively, of the operating budget.

The projected 2012 shortfall in Strongsville this year is 4 percent, but if the 6.9-mill levy on the Aug. 2 ballot fails, state auditors take that as an indication the district has no way to turn around its fiscal freefall, he said.

The district has made $4.3 million in permanent cuts in the coming school year, plus another $1.6 million that may or may not be implemented pending the outcome of the August election, officials said.

Those cuts include the middle school foreign language program.

Parkinson said the 6.9-mill levy would generate about $10 million a year.


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