Budgeting for Mean, Lean Times Part 6

6. I know a variety of sources for budget dollars and who controls those dollars including:]

•  Federal dollars
• Grant dollars (all grants, not just library-specific grants)
• Principal’s discretionary budget (and what “budget dust” is)
• PTA/PTO spending
• Staff development dollars
• Foundation monies*

Consider your (re)sources
Schools get funding from a variety of sources. The percentage that any one of these sources contributes to a budget can widely vary from state to state, and even from district to district. But nearly all public schools get some funds from:

• A state aid formula is usually a baseline amount paid to all districts on a per pupil basis. It comes directly from the state budget.
• Local revenue, often from property taxes, is often a large percentage of many states’ school budgets. It is this source of revenue which can create large funding disparities among districts.
• Special bond levies are usually passed to fund new buildings or sometimes large investments in technology. These usually require a public referendum.
• Federal funds in the form of block grants, Chapter grants or special grants. These monies are a small percentage of most school budgets, but are critical to specific programs.
• Private dollars from educational foundations*, parent organizations or endowments are becoming increasingly important to districts with lots of community involvement and some wealth.
• Private and government agency grants can be a source of revenue for specific projects which address specific needs. Competition for large grants is becoming increasingly fierce, and good grant writing takes time, experience and talent. Rather than writing library or technology-specific grants, you may be better off collaborating with other grant writers who may need library and technology resources.
• Fundraisers can make small amounts of money for those who wish to hold them. Book fairs, candy sales, and car washes are best sponsored by a “Friends of the School Library” than directly by school personnel.

Budget makers need to exercise caution if they rely too heavily on funding sources from outside the regular school operating budget. If library and technology programs are to be viewed as core to the educational process, then funding for them should be from the regular school budget.

Learn about your district’s budget
How much money does your school operate with each year? Where exactly does that money come from and where does it go? How much Block Grant money is available? What other special levies or grants are around? What is the budget for staff development? Your school’s business manager can help you determine these budgets. They are, by law, public information. Visit with your school board representative and get his or her perspective on finance and the budget.

Take some time to learn how local tax rates are determined. Be prepared to take some time if you seriously want to understand these often Byzantine formulas. Learn the difference between capital funds and general funds. Know what tax abatements are. Take a school finance class at the local university. You will be able to amaze your friends, baffle your enemies, and never have to worry about running out of stimulating conversation.

Like other librarians, I have taken my budget requests to my principal and been told there is no money in the budget. My follow-up questions then asked, “Is there money in the budget for textbooks? for band uniforms? for the office copier? for summer school?” If the answer to any of those questions was yes, then both the principal and I knew that the question was no longer one of “is there money in the budget,” but “how do we chose to spend the money in the budget?” An important difference that opens the door to budgeting for reasons other than tradition.

Learn who controls the budget.
Does the superintendent in your district traditionally distribute funds? The building principal? A hands-on kind of school board? Is the money allocated to buildings on a per pupil basis, and then controlled by a site-based decision making committee? Is there a grant committee? Knowing to whom to submit a budget proposal is critical

Budget dust. A good time to ask for money for a special project or piece of equipment is 30-40 days before the end of the school’s fiscal year. Principals and others may be looking for ways to spend the small balances of their discretionary accounts (budget dust).

* My high school has a foundation which is supported, I believe, primarily by "Hall of Fame" winners. The criteria for my high school was: five years of consecutive employment and no outstanding warrants. The more you give, the higher your picture was placed on the wall and less subject to vandalism.