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Ackerman asks for budget-cutting contingencies - of 20%, 25%, and 30%

Confronted with a possible $430 million shortfall in the next fiscal year, Philadelphia School Superintendent Arlene C. Ackerman has asked her top administrators to prepare contingency plans to cut 20 percent, 25 percent, and 30 percent of their budgets.

Philadelphia Superintendent Arlene C. Ackerman. (David M Warren / File)
Philadelphia Superintendent Arlene C. Ackerman. (David M Warren / File)Read more

Confronted with a possible $430 million shortfall in the next fiscal year, Philadelphia School Superintendent Arlene C. Ackerman has asked her top administrators to prepare contingency plans to cut 20 percent, 25 percent, and 30 percent of their budgets.

The directive was contained in a brief e-mail sent Dec. 29 to members of Ackerman's leadership team, according to district sources. The plans were due at 10 a.m. Tuesday, and top administrators are scheduled to gather for a budget meeting Friday morning.

The district, which has 162,000 students and nearly 24,000 employees, currently receives 55 percent of its $3.2 billion budget from the state.

But district officials are doubtful about their prospects in Harrisburg once the fiscal year ends June 30. Gov.-elect Tom Corbett has pledged not to raise taxes, and he and the Republican-controlled legislature are facing a $4 billion state deficit in the next fiscal year.

An additional $250 million in federal stimulus funds used to balance this year's budget will not be available in the future.

The city contributes about 27 percent - and in an election year for City Council and the mayor, local officials are typically reluctant to raise taxes.

Jerry Jordan, president of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, said that while the district had contingency plans to cope with expected funding shortfalls in the past, he did not believe the district had ever contemplated such massive reductions.

"That is an enormous number," said Jordan, who became a teacher in the district in 1976.

Across-the-board cuts cannot be implemented because the district is legally mandated by state and federal law to provide a variety of services, such as special education.

"The School District of Philadelphia is exploring multiple options to soften the impact of a budget shortfall," Shana Kemp, a district spokeswoman, said in a statement to The Inquirer. "We will have to make strategic fiscal decisions, but, in doing so, we will remain focused on funding those programs and initiatives that led to the recent, tremendous increase in achievement by our students. Their needs and education remain our priority throughout this process."

Although Corbett has not announced his entire cabinet, Kemp said, the district welcomes "the opportunity to work with them to address the matter."

Jordan said Ackerman had phoned him before Christmas to tell him that the district was facing a revenue gap in the next fiscal year because the federal stimulus programs were ending. But Jordan said he had not heard about the percentages mentioned in the contingency plans until contacted Tuesday by The Inquirer.

He said he was worried about the impact large cuts would have on students and staff in a district that has seen eight years of improved test scores.

"In this era of accountability, it is very alarming that cuts will take place," he said. "And then the finger will be pointed, and teachers will be blamed for not bringing children up to the standards."

Jordan said staff reductions were not discussed during his short phone conversation with Ackerman.

"She did not mention layoffs, but I have gone through budget problems before," Jordan said. "I know the only way you get savings is you have to go for bodies."

Officials acknowledged about two weeks ago that the district was facing a gap of $430 million after July 1 and that the shortfall could surpass the half-billion mark under worst-case scenarios.

But, in a hastily arranged conference call at that time with Mayor Nutter, Ackerman said she did not feel comfortable discussing the district's budget plans beyond the loss of the $250 million in federal stimulus funds.

Michael Masch, the district's chief financial officer, warned the School Reform Commission in October that the district would have to figure out how to cope with the end of the two-year federal stimulus programs July 1.

He said then that the district's top priority was minimizing the impact on academics, but said the district likely would have to "wrestle this spring with making some very tough budget decisions."

At that time, Masch said the district was on track to close the current fiscal year with a balanced budget.

He also said that in light of the expected financial challenges, his office hoped to propose a spending plan in February for the next fiscal year, to ensure additional time for public comment.