The 2020-21 budget for the South East Cornerstone Public School Division (SECPSD) has been sent to the provincial Ministry of Education for approval.
For a third consecutive year, the local division is filing a $4.6 million cash deficit operational budget, said Shelley Toth, the division’s chief financial officer.
Pending wholesale adjustments triggered by necessary responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, the current budget includes $112.5 million in projected revenues, and operating expenditures of $111.6 million and $11.6 million for capital expenditures.
“We haven’t identified some cost savings this year, but when we do, we will have to post them separately for future use as a one-time event and then we’ll be posting additional future costs as an individual item too,” she said.
Once the provincial health and education bodies indicate what will be expected of the school divisions moving forward into a new academic year, these numbers and budgeted items will become more concrete.
Toth said there is a 1.8 per cent increase in overall funding being put in place for SECPSD in this year’s provincial budget, and the two per cent increase in salaries for teachers as well as contracted union employees will be covered by the province.
“When it’s all together and we’ve pulled out all the information, it’s a $4.6 million operational deficit,” Toth said.
The division had been dipping into an accumulated surplus of about $30 million to accommodate past operating deficits and they will do so again this fiscal year.
“We could be down to $25 million surplus for sure, and we’re hoping for better in the future, we’ll just have to wait and see what August brings,” she said.
On the capital expenditure file, Toth said $8.2 million of the overall $11.6 million is to be directed to the new Weyburn elementary school.
Another $1.5 million is designated for computer hardware and equipment for eight schools that will be “refreshed” and the data centre receiving an upgrade.
There is another $1.5 million set for the purchase of new school buses.
Trustee Jim Henderson, who is the trustee for Subdivision No. 3 in the far southeast corner of the province, noted that at one time when the currency exchange rate was more beneficial for Canada, they would be able to purchase 10 new school buses from the American suppliers, now that’s probably not possible.
Another $225,000 is being set aside for other division vehicles and $131,000 is designated for the purchase of office furniture and equipment.
Toth explained the $8.2 capital grant for the Legacy Park Elementary School in Weyburn, will not be expensed until the construction is complete. The school will be amortized over a 50-year period.
To explain the operating cash deficit, Toth tabled a report showing operating revenues at $111.5 million and expenses just under $116.5 million that included $11.6 million in tangible capital assets statements, and a further $6.6 million in amortization and $94,500 for future employee benefits.
Debt servicing is now just around $600,000 or less than one per cent of the overall operations while salaries and benefits take up 72 per cent of the expenditures, or nearly $80 million. Goods and services eat up another 22 per cent, or $24.4 million and amortization at six per cent grabs the aforementioned $6.6 million.
