Dist. 211 board debates $400,000 surplus in 2015-16 budget
Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211's tentative 2015-16 budget plans for $240.8 million in revenues, but it was the $400,000 margin above anticipated operating costs that triggered the most discussion at Thursday's school board meeting.
First-year board member Peter Dombrowski, who ultimately cast the sole vote against the tentative budget, asked his fellow members how they felt about the $400,000 contingency in the budget.
He said the district historically has avoided needing each budget's contingency, resulting in it adding to the district's reserves.
"Why would we budget for a contingency when we have previous years' contingencies to fall back on?" Dombrowski asked. "Why take it from the property-tax payers when we have it in reserves?"
Board member Robert LeFevre disagreed having a safety margin in each year's budget was compounding these contingencies.
Superintendent Dan Cates said District 211 has been fortunate to have rarely fallen back on its contingencies. But in a year of great uncertainties about state funding - not to mention talk in Springfield of a property tax freeze - Cates said $400,000 is a very trim margin for emergencies.
"We think it's a good budget," Cates said on behalf of the administration.
Some other board members, like Anna Klimkowicz, seemed to feel Dombrowski had raised a valid point for discussion, but she ultimately disagreed with his opposition to the budget on that issue.
"Personally, I agree with having the contingency," Klimkowicz said. "I think that's a sound way to go forward."
The tentative budget is now on display, both online and at the district's administration building at 1750 S. Roselle Road in Palatine, before its public hearing and final approval at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 17.
Board members favored the idea of soliciting questions in advance, whose answers could be summarized online as well as at the public hearing.
A cutoff point was assumed necessary to get questions researched before the public hearing, but such a deadline was not determined at Thursday night's meeting.