Wake Budget REductions 2010-11

Facing a potential funding gap of $20 million for the next fiscal year, WCPSS Superintendent Del Burns called for his senior management team to prepare plans for cutting its Central Services operations. Burns outlined anticipated cost increases and revenue declines for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2010. The changes the school system must prepare for include:
• $8 million in discretionary cuts in state funding as part of the second year of the biennial budget;
• an anticipated increase of $6 million in employee retirement, hospitalization, dental insurance and local salary supplements;
• a reduction of $3 million available from system reserves to balance the budget; and
• unknown expenses associated with growth and new schools.

Burns directed his leadership team to develop and submit the reduction plans. Burns will then review them, make any revisions and include them in his budget recommendations which are slated to be presented to the Wake County Board of Education in early March. The school board will work through the recommendations and submit their request to the Wake County Board of Commissioners by May 15.

State Budget

North Carolina state government should have at least $620 million to use in the event of a budget shortfall this fiscal year, state budget director Charlie Perusse told lawmakers Wednesday. Perusse's office estimates it will have $469 million from unused funds and holdbacks of up to 5 percent from state agencies ordered by Gov. Beverly Perdue to ensure there's money to pay bills. There's another $150 million in the rainy-day reserve fund. So far, revenues are $95 million less than what lawmakers projected when they passed the $19 billion budget in August. That shortfall is nowhere near the $3.2 billion shortfall Perdue faced last year.(THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, 11/18/09).