Burlington Community School District’s Superintendent says that the school’s current budgetary situation is in limbo right now, but stresses that he expects the school district to be “fine”.
Superintendent Pat Coen spoke on the KBUR Talkshow on Wednesday. He says that because legislators in Des Moines haven’t appropriated funds for schools, and are throwing out numbers that vary by billions, there isn’t any telling what the budget will look like.
“We have not received any word out of Des Moines as to what our allowable growth–that is, new money coming in–will be,” Coen told KBUR’s Steve Hexom and Rob Sussman.
Despite budgetary uncertianty, some things simply can’t wait: like union negotiations. The district has been speaking with it’s various unions despite not knowing exactly what new revenue they’ll be receiving.
“I realize that when we’re negotiating, we’re talking about their quality of life. It’s very critical that we do it right,” said Coen, “But we can’t do it right if we don’t know what the money is.”
Coen did say that he expects the budget to turn out “fine” in the end, noting that the district has managed to cut the number of students heading out of the district through open enrollment down significantly. With every student that leaves the district through open enrollment, Burlington Schools get less money.
Legislators in Des Moines are estimating around $1.25 billion will be appropriated to schools in the coming year, but several lawmakers are pushing for a much higher number: closer to $2.4 billion.
