District unsure of fiscal future

As 2009 dawns on the financially strapped state, Newport-Mesa Unified School District officials are far from knowing just how badly the stumbling economy, and resulting budget cuts, will hurt them.

But one sign of how big of a challenge they perceive it to be can be seen in the launching of a new web page for budget news, with a link front and center on the district website. The site, which details the 2008-09 district budget, calls the statewide outlook “grim,” and offers ways to ask lawmakers to spare schools, is just one more informational tool, officials said.

“It’s just to keep staff and the community informed about what we’re doing,” said district spokeswoman Laura Boss. But during a year when cuts are looming, Boss added that keeping the community informed was more important than ever.

However harsh the news is, the district is well prepared for the next year, Deputy Supt. Paul Reed said.

“We’re fiscally in a position that none of what they’re proposing in this year is really a problem,” Reed said.

“This year” means the current, troubled negotiations by the state Legislature to cut the budget halfway through the fiscal year, as projections for state revenues have tanked, Reed said.

Even the 2009-10 school year shouldn’t pose drastic problems, he added.

He worries more about the years to come, when current reserves are harder to stretch.

“There are long-range implications here,” he said. “[The state] might cause changes in programs or cuts.”

Since the district’s whole funding picture depends on negotiations in Sacramento — not just now, but again in the summer, when talks about next year begin — it’s hard to plan for the future precisely, Reed said.

“At this point, we just don’t know,” he said.

According to district officials, the first proposals to cut costs will be going before the Newport-Mesa school board in late January or early February. Even last year, the district ended up cutting $3 million from its final budget — and that was before the state’s finances reached near-meltdown.

“It’s anticipated that the board will hear from the superintendent by its first meeting in February with regards to potential cuts and the recommendations relative to that,” Boss said.

But for those looking for as much information as possible, one place to check back might be the school’s budget web page: web.nmusd.us, then click on “NMUSD Budget Watch.”

MICHAEL ALEXANDER may be reached at (714) 966-4618 or at [email protected].