School Board OKs ‘Positive’ Budget Report To County

The Pasadena Unified School District school board Thursday night approved, by a 4-1 vote, a “positive” report to the county Office of Education, certifying it is meeting its financial obligations.

Board members Elizabeth Pomeroy and Roy Boulghourjian were absent for the meeting. Board member Kimberly Kenne voted against the move.All districts are required, at least twice a year, to certify they can meet their financial obligations for the current fiscal year and, by projection, the next two fiscal years.

Pasadena submitted its first interim report on Dec. 15, and this next one is due by March 15. The second interim report shows revenue and expenditures through Jan. 31 and projected expenditures through June 30.

The report says the district, already beset by falling enrollment, expects to lose another 500 or so students next year.

The numbers also show $243 million-plus in expenditures and some $237 million in revenues, most from state sources. The reason that the PUSD can have this deficit spending is because it had nearly $33 million in carry-over funds from the 2018-2019 fiscal year on July 1, 2019, at the beginning of the current fiscal year, according to Scott Phelps, the school board’s vice president.

Phelps said rising costs of special education (mandated by the state) and food services represented significant expenditure increases over the past two years.

Kenne voted against the measure, citing a “lack of conversation about the budget cuts and our budget planning for next year.’’

In September, the board announced it would have to close the Franklin, Jefferson and Roosevelt elementary schools next year. Then in October, the school board announced the upcoming closure of Wilson Middle School.

Last week, the board signed off on 55 layoffs, mostly connected to those closures, including 44 teachers, four principals and one assistant principal.

“This budget has us meeting our required reserves in each of the next three years, subject to budget assumptions that are in line with county standards for approval,’’ said board President Patrick Cahalan.

Cahalan also said, “It is always a hard balance to strike between site stability and fiscal responsibility. We also are working off of revenue assumptions, given that it is always possible for California to slip into a recession or for the governor’s proposed January budget to undergo changes before it is approved in June.

“Unfortunately, we have to forge ahead with our best estimates now, and trust in the state legislature to prioritize state spending sensibly.’’