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Replies to Budget Suggestions

Carroll County Public Schools, like many organizations across the country, has been affected by the recession, increasing costs, and decreasing revenues. To meet the challenge presented by the anticipated budget shortfall, CCPS has been, and will continue to, identify and analyze current and proposed expenditures for possible cost savings.

Reviews of and responses to specific suggestions are underway and will be posted upon completion.

 

 Administrative Efficiency

Question/Suggestion: What steps is the school system taking to be more efficient in its administrative operations?

Response: The Payroll Office has eliminated the printing and mailing of direct deposit payroll vouchers. Employees are able to access a virtual image of their payroll voucher through the Employee Access Center website, which maintains these electronic images, as well as W-2s, for employees to access at their convenience at any time. In addition to printing and voucher stock, postage for mailing the documents to temporary employees (hourly or substitute workers) is saved. By combining this initiative with the mailing of payroll checks for the limited number of employees not taking advantage of direct deposit, special courier runs to every school and cost center each payday have been eliminated. It is estimated that this saves $42,599 in fiscal year 2012 and again in subsequent years.

 Student Transportation

Question/Suggestion: Why did the school system change school starting and ending times and what else is it doing to control student transportation costs.

Response: To make more effective and economical use of school buses, the Transportation Department reviewed its operations and determined that by adjusting school starting and ending times it could realize significant savings by reducing the number of school buses needed to transport students to and from school. This and other transportation cost saving initiatives are discussed in the attached document.
 

Furloughs

Suggestion:  Furlough employees instead of reducing the number of staff positions.

Response: A furlough is the placement of an employee in a temporary, non-duty, non-pay status (i.e., time off without pay) for budget-required reasons. Organizations cut costs through the use of furlough days in order to deal with reduced budgets. Furloughs allow an organization to reduce labor costs temporarily without layoffs.   
 
The drawback to furloughs is that they do not permanently reduce the budget. They are best used as a stopgap measure to deal with unanticipated revenue downturns after the fiscal year has begun.   
 
Carroll County Public Schools has considered furloughs and determined that they are not the best strategy at this time. Due to impending permanent revenue reductions, we believe permanent expenditure reductions are a more appropriate action. 
 
Furloughs remain an option in the future. 

Utilities

Question/Suggestion: What is the Carroll County Public School System doing to reduce/control utility costs?
 
Response: This is a complex area and there are a number of strategies in use throughout the system. They are discussed in this document.

Other Revenue

Question/Suggestion: Does Carroll County Public Schools seek additional sources of revenue besides tax dollars and fees?

Response: The Finance and Purchasing Departments have initiated and/or expanded several initiatives to generate additional revenue for the school system. These revenues go back into the general fund and are budgeted alongside traditional funding sources in the non-restricted operating budget. These initiatives are discussed in this document.