Dist. 33 voters giveth and state taketh away

By Harry Hitzeman Daily Herald Staff Writer
Posted Friday, September 24, 2004

Even after voters approved a tax-increase request last year, West Chicago Elementary School District 33 can't seem to get ahead - or even catch up.

When the state plugged the district's extra revenue from the tax increase - about $1 million per year - into the formula that measures district wealth, the result was that District 33 is getting $100 less in state funding per student for this school year.

Multiply the $100 by the district's 3,600 students and it comes to $360,000 less than the district expected.

That means the district's $33.5 million spending plan for this year shows a deficit of nearly $250,000.

Susan Caddy, the district's director of business and operations, said the budget would be in the black if it wasn't for the state decrease.

"It was another slap in the face," she said.

Another factor that could exacerbate the deficit is a tentative contract with teachers.

In March 2003, the teachers union announced it had agreed to a one-year pay freeze and to contribute more for health insurance to help the district save money.

Although their contract expired over the summer, teachers reported to work last month without incident.

Caddy said the district has reached a tentative deal with the union that includes a raise, but the rank-and-file have not voted on it yet.

Union Co-President Mary Beth Cooney said she hadn't seen the proposal and didn't know when it would be put up for a vote.

"We are still making plans to show the tentative contract to our members," she said.

The administration has estimated the raises could total $300,000, which could push the budget deficit to more than $500,000.

"That $250,000 (deficit) is most likely to get worse once the contract is finalized," Caddy said.

The drop in state funding has aggravated board members and administrators, who thought the budget would be balanced this year.

"Because our taxpayers supported us with more money, the state is providing less. It would be different if we were a rich school (district), but we're not," board member Robert Lemon said. "It's like the rules say we can't win."

Voters in April 2003 approved a ballot question that will raise the tax rate 64 cents over a four-year span.

The total increase will amount to nearly $300 for the owner of a $150,000 home, who paid about $1,550 in taxes to the district this year.

School officials considered asking for a larger tax increase in 2003 to offset the decrease in state aid, but Caddy said the district didn't want to "scare voters off."

As for this school year, Caddy said the district will look at ways to trim costs, but no teacher positions will be cut. She said District 33 will use money from its reserves to cover this year's deficit, but that's not a long-term financial option.

"We're going to operate a deficit budget this year. We don't have any choice," she said. "The writing's on the wall."