EDUCATION Clear Creek ISD approves final FY 2022-23 budget amid shortfalls
BY DANIEL WEEKS
“In 2021 we continued to add posi- tions not knowing the significant [enrollment] drop that we would have post-pandemic,” Benzaia said. Benzaia said this year’s budget is balanced with a projected transfer of $9.2 million from the district’s capital and contingency funds, which is money reserved to address unforeseen financial issues or items not covered by the general fund, such as vehicles for the district’s new school liaison officers. The FY 2022-23 budget plan is dedicated to using no more than 20% of the capital and contingency funds, Benzaia said. She said the total fund balance is estimated at $61.4 million as of July 31. According to the presentation, this year’s revenue is about $4.5 million less than the FY 2021-22 budgeted revenue, and operating expenses decreased by $4.5 million. The revenue source for the district that saw the largest decrease year over year was from state programs, which decreased from $110 million to $88.7 million, Benzaia said. “We’ve cut our spending even though we are in an inflationary climate,” trustee Jeff Larson said. “We really need the state to do its part. Send the cards and letters to your representatives and state senators because I don’t know how much more blood we can squeeze out of the turnip.”
Clear Creek ISD removed 76.5 teaching positions and transferred money from its contingency fund to make up for budget shortfalls in the fiscal year 2022-23 budget plan. The CCISD board of trustees passed the district’s FY 2022-23 budget at a public hearing Aug. 22, the final step in the budget-setting process. The FY 2022-23 tax rate, which was adopted separately on Sept. 19, was reduced to $1.1146 per $100 of valuation due to a rise in property values. The budget was passed amid shortfalls caused by a drop in student attendance during the coronavirus pandemic. Attendance is estimated to remain unchanged from the previous year, furthering challenges the district faces in the coming years, Chief Financial Officer Alice Benzaia said. Benzaia said during an Aug. 22 presentation that 65.5 core teacher roles were eliminated, along with 4.5 world language cultures teaching positions and 6.5 visual and per- forming arts teaching positions. Six positions were added in the areas of advanced academics, career and technology, early learning, leadership development and special education. The reductions are the first time teaching positions had been elimi- nated since the 2012-13 school year, Benzaia said in the presentation.
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CLEAR CREEK ISD HISTORICAL STAFFING CHANGES
The district removed 76.5 teaching positions this year as the first reductions in staff since the 2012-13 school year, while also adding six new positions.
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SOURCE: ALICE BENZAIA/COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
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BAY AREA EDITION • SEPTEMBER 2022
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