Schools slammed with increasing costs
Surrey Board of Education Chair Laurae McNally is bracing for a tough budget year.
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Updated: October 23, 2009 1:03 PM
Still reeling from funding shortfalls, this city's school district is bracing for even tougher finanicial times in the year ahead.
As the Surrey School District prepares to consider its 2009-10 operating budget in December, weighty financial requirements from Victoria indicate this will be a tough year.
The district is already facing a $9.5-million shortfall due to a reduction in revenues and increased costs.
In the coming year, new financial requirements imposed by the province will add nearly $2 million in expenses annually to Surrey's bottom line – the equivalent of the annual salaries for 28 full-time teachers.
Starting in 2010, school districts will have to report all carbon emissions to the province using expensive tracking software paid for with existing budget dollars. The cost of the software alone is $50,000 per year.
If the district doesn't meet carbon targets, the penalty could be as high as $800,000.
There is also the province's new Harmonized Sales Tax, which is expected to cost the district about $1 million annually.
"It's a huge problem," said Trustee Laurae McNally, chair of the Surrey Board of Education, who points out this district has already cut costs to the bone.
She's mystified as to why the province would push forward with the expensive carbon program in the middle of a global recession.
"I think everyone understands we need to look after our environment," McNally said. "What it comes down to is priorities. I have a sneaking suspicion this will not be high on parents' priority list when they see other needs in classrooms."
The expense will ultimately affect students, and by extension, their parents, McNally said.
"It's another item that's got dropped into school districts' laps with no warning and we're not funded for it," McNally said. "Ultimately, it comes out of classrooms."
McNally noted that Parent Advisory Councils have had their funding cut, which puts more of an onus on moms and dads to raise money for schools.
Education minister Margaret McDiarmid said school districts should have prepared for the carbon reporting.
"All 60 B.C. school districts signed on to the Climate Action Charter," McDiarmid said. "In return for meeting our carbon-reduction targets, boards are being refunded the cost of the carbon tax."
The total financial impact of implementing the carbon reduction is unclear.
"It's going to (have an impact)," McNally said. "I think this next budget year is going to be very tough."
– with files from The Tri-City News
kdiakiw@surreyleader.com
