Politics & Government

School Chief Says Cuts in State Aid May Be Worse Than Expected

Village officials also worry about impact on tax freeze included in Walker's budget proposal.

With the details of Gov. Scott Walker’s biennial budget proposal not completely clear, Shorewood officials are still trying to figure out what significant cuts in state aid mean for the financial future fo the village and school district.

The bottom line is, regardless of whether the budget repair bill sees its way through the Legislature, there will be a $1.2 billion cut in state aid to schools and local governments over two years, if the budget proposal passes.

As part of the plan, Walker said the budget repair bill, which is lingering in the Legislature because Senate Democrats are refusing to return to Madison, is designed to help municipalities offset the revenue it will lose through state aid cuts.

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His budget, proposed Tuesday, includes $834 million in cuts to state aid to schools and an overall 5.5 percent hit in the revenue cap.

Shorewood Superintendent Blane McCann said the district had planned for a decrease in state aid in the $750,000 to $800,000 range, but it looks like the reduction may be much more than officials anticipated.

Find out what's happening in Shorewoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“We don’t exactly know what it means for us just yet,” McCann said.

School Board President Paul Zovic said in one read of the budget, aid cuts may be less than they have been in previous years, but added things are still very unclear.

"We still need to see the details that come with the numbers," Zovic said.

An analysis by a University of Wisconsin professor projected that Shorewood could see an overall decrease of $1.1 million in its revenue cap - the total amount districts can collect in state aid and property taxes.

The district and the teachers union , but it is set to expire in just months — June 30. They will be tied to the terms of the contracts even with massive cut in funds from the state.

, according to its agreement with the teachers union, and McCann said he intends on waiting until then.

Under Walker's budget, districts could move to a four-day week to cut costs as the proposal calls for lifting the requirement for 180 days of school.

McCann said four-day weeks aren't something officials have talked about, but that doesn't mean they wouldn't work in Shorewood.

Other changes in the budget include no more limits on school choice or income restrictions, meaning public schools may lose students to choice schools.

Village concerned about levy freeze

With the village planning to finance a lot of capital projects, including a proposed $71.5 million sewer project, Village Manager Chris Swartz said Wednesday it's unclear whether capital projects would fall under Walker's proposed freeze on property tax levies.

“That is the one we are really researching because obviously the village of Shorewood has a lot of capital projects coming up,” Swartz said. “It’s new sewers, it’s the road programs, and if in fact we can’t levy for that debt without decreasing operations to the same amount, it is going to be a substantial impact on our residents.”

Under Walker’s budget county and municipal aid payments would be cut by $96 million in 2012. It also puts a freeze on county and municipal levy increases, so municipalities can't just raise taxes to offset the loss of state aid.

However, if a community sees an increase in its tax base increase due to new construction, it would be allowed to increase taxes by that percentage.

Swartz said the tools that local municipalities are given are not sufficient to address the loss in state aid.

The budget will also eliminate financial assistance for local government recycling programs and remove a requirement to have a program.

“We know recycling is something that is very important to the village,” Swartz said.

He added he knows it’s part of the culture in Shorewood and taking the funds away is an issue officials will have to address.


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