Baltimore County Schools Superintendent Joe Hairston proposed a $1.16 billion operating budget that he said targets teacher retention, alternative learning and new federally required accounting procedures.
Hairston presented the budget, which reflects a 10.4 percent increase over the 2007 allocation, at Tuesday evening?s School Board meeting, education officials said. The 2008 budget includes $40 million for salary restructuring, 160 new teacher and staff positions, and funds to expand all-day kindergarten.
“Our children depend on us as adults to deliver services and instruction so that each one of them succeeds,” Hairston said in a statement. “Our parents and citizens expect us to do so without exception.”
Starting this fiscal year, which begins in June, state and local governments will be required to fund retirement benefits on an accrual basis. Hairston?s budget proposal includes $15.8 million to contribute to a new county fund to finance the cost and is considering $15.8 million in plan reductions, said school officials said.
Final determinations are subject to negotiations with teachers? unions, said school spokeswoman Kara Calder.
“The county executive approached us and said, ?We?ve got to do this together, here?s what we suggest,? ” Calder said. “We would fund half of it in new money and suggested we realize some cost reductions to fund the rest.”
School officials said they expect most of the $109.8 million difference from the 2007 budget to come from state sources.
The proposal, which the County Council and county executive must approve, also earmarks $3 million to support Title 1 middle schools, $4.3 million for two new programs for low-performing students, $814,000 in start-up costs for the Vincent Farm Elementary School and $2.1 million to expand all-day kindergarten at nine elementary schools.
