Saturday, April 28, 2018

Whoa! Bd. of Mythomania's $251M School Budget - a Cap Bank Muncher Bonanza!?!

Well, with this egregious School Budget for 2018-19, looks like the Board of Mythomania, aka Board of EDems, Board of Hoarders, Board of Silence, Board of Dysfunction can now be called the Board of Cap Bank Munchers Extraordinaire.

This $251.1 million school budget comes with a $pending increase of a Whopping $13.0 million or 5.4% over last year's $238.1 million. Now if that doesn't make you stand up and pay attention - wait, it gets worse.

Seems the board, in their continued lack of concern for the taxpayers, have decided that they would pass along to you $11.3 million of that $13.0 million of increased $pending or some 87% of it. That increase of $11.3 million in the Local Tax Levy represents a 5.3% increase over last year's $212.6 million.

Now wait a second, you may logically ponder - how can you raise taxes by 5.3% when there's a 2% Cap Limitation on the Local Tax Levy?

Good question - ever hear of exceptions, adjustments and the infamous Cap Bank? You know thingies like health insurance, pensions, emergencies, etc - and increased enrollment adjustments and the infamous Cap Bank.

You remember the Cap Bank - that's where you can bank any years that you budget below the 2% Cap Limitation and use it later. In other words, in the years when the board boasts about coming in under the 2% Cap, when they use it, they conveniently don't tell you that their taking it back. And their taking back a lot this year to fund their excesses.

So, recognizing that you can't increase the Local Tax Levy by 5.3% without their using some if not all of the above, I made an OPRA Request for the Cap Bank worksheets ( the Cap Banking Eligibility and Adj, Prebudget Year Tax Levy and Enrollment Adj. worksheets) for this school budget. This is where you can see how they came up with the $11.3 million increase in the Local Tax Levy.

As of yet, I haven't received a response to the OPRA Request but as soon as I do, I will pass along the information.

However, it's not that hard to approximate, or better said, questimate what they used in this school budget. Seems like they used something in the area of $4.4-$4.5 million for the 2% increase and $7.0-$7.5 million for the enrollment adjustments and use of the Cap Bank.

Yup, they dug mighty deep into the Cap Bank to support this Grossly Bloated 'Pot of Money' they call a School Budget.

Hence, they will forever be known as the Board of Cap Bank Munchers Extraordinaire.

Another disconcerting aspect of this school budget is their continued use of the infamous 'Staffing Shell-Game.' You remember what that is - it's where they add unbudgeted staffing to the budget but don't disclose it to you in the school budget. Seems in this school budget they added some 17.5 unbudgeted heads to the payroll but didn't bother to disclose to you.

Unbudgeted heads:

6.0 Teachers
4.5 Para's
2.0  Psychologists
1.0 Special Ed Supervisor
1.0 Staff Dev Trainer
2.0 Trans. drivers
1.0 Network Engineer

Now, they did have some deletions in staff but none that would indicate that those additions were replacements and not likely equal to the money involved with adding those 17.5 unbudgeted heads to the payroll.

So, why is this important? Because they're adding staff to the payroll and not disclosing it to you when they put these budgets together. For example, they asking for 22 more teachers in this budget and if you knew that they already added 6 to the payroll, wouldn't you ask why they need 22 more teachers when they just added 6? I would?

And if you don't think this 'Staffing Shell Game' is a concern and the numbers aren't large, then go back to previous posts on the 'Staffing Shell Game' and you can see how large the numbers can get and also, how they do it, how you can see how they do it and why it's important to you for them to disclose it in these school budgets.

It's hard to take this school budget seriously but, as they presented it, you can see what this will cost you when they convert to a calendar year basis by entering your assessed value below.





And here's their 2018-19 School Budget:




Anyhoo, this school budget is no doubt - the most egregious thing that I've ever seen them put together over there on Mythomania Lane. And if the stink of it doesn't affect you - then the hit to your pocketbook surely will.


Wednesday, April 25, 2018

What full funding of school aid would cost - NJ Spotlight

Well, just saw this piece in NJ Spotlight here - 'What would full funding of school aid look like? Add 2.3B to districts.'

It states, 'Given all the debate over what is indeed “full funding” of school aid in New Jersey, the state’s nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services has provided the latest estimate of what every district would receive under the school finance law in the best of circumstances. But beware of sticker shock; the OLS estimates that 70 percent of all districts are underfunded by more than $2.2 billion, if the state were to meet its full obligations under its decade-old law. Meanwhile, the remaining districts are seeing $660 million in aid that exceeds the state formula, leaving a net of $1.5 billion.'

Here's Middlesex County:



Anyhoo, there's something to get your attention.

Tuesday, April 24, 2018

Edison Board of Mythomania unanimously accepts Super O'Malley's Resignation

Well, there's a tad bit of a surprise. What happened to the 4 Votes to Not accept his resignation the first time it came up for a vote when one of the members was absent?

Last night, the board unanimously accepted Super Dr. Richard 'Looking for the Exit Ramp' O'Malley's resignation.

Of course, his resignation isn't effective until June 30, 2019.

Let's hope that the O'Malley supporters on the board aren't looking to the next election with hopes of bringing him back again in this game of Mythomania Lane follies going on here. It's this board's responsibility to deal with the Super's contract and the search for a new Super - it's not their choice to pass it on to the next board.

We should all thank him for his service but say Here's your Hat, What's your Hurry. Difficult to see how hanging around for 14 months after you resign, in a lame duck status, is helpful to anyone.

O'Malley resigned - he even went to the papers to do it. Why would you want to have someone who resigns and does this to hang around for another 14 months?

Seems that wouldn't be beneficial to either the School District or Señor O'Malley and the fair thing to do would be honor his contract and part company as soon as practical.


On another note, seems the 2018-19 School budget will be publicly available tomorrow or Thursday for the May 2, 2018 Budget Hearing with these 'Cap Bank' munchers. There apparently making some last minute changes to reduce the budget.

Not sure what that means - if it's a change that actually results in a savings or just a change that reduces one line of the budget and increases another by the same amount. Will have to see when the budget becomes available.

Anyhoo, let's hope the board has something to say on the status of Señor O'Malley and any plans to search for a new Superintendent.

Saturday, April 21, 2018

Edison Super O'Malley's resignation up for vote - otra vez!

Well, here we go again. On Monday's Public Meeting Agenda are some noteworthy thingies. First and foremost is the vote on accepting Señor O'Malley's resignation, effective June 30, 2019.

Yup, that's right - he's resigning but not until June 30, 2019. Seriously!?! There's a conversation worth having after they vote to accept his resignation.

Section A.23 of the Personnel section contains the resolution:


Also of interest is the resolution to change insurance brokers which they say will save $1 million. That should be an interesting vote. Who on the board wouldn't want to save $1 million for the school district?

Of course, this has to be a real savings to the taxpayers and not the 'saving' as defined by the Board of Mythomania - where they underspend on one line item and just add it back to another line item. So, lets see what happens with this vote.

Finally, if you look at the upcoming meeting in the agenda, you'll find there's a Special Meeting on May 2, 2018 at the Ed Center at 7:00PM on the School Budget for 2018-19. 

Yup, that's right - A Budget Hearing on the $252 million School Budget for 2018-19 with these 'Cap Bank' munchers.

Not for nothing but it would be nice if they put the budget out for public to see and review before the May 2nd meeting. While you may not be able to vote on these budgets anymore, you still have a right to see and review the budget and to make informed comments. Kind of hard to make informed comments if you don't have anything to comment on. But hey, that's no Biggie, right? It's only $252 million of which You Pay 90%!?!

Anyhoo, pay attention to what happens at Monday's meeting over there on Mythomania Lane.