Gwinnett County, the state's largest school district, plans to meet a projected $89 million budget shortfall next year by furloughing most employees two days and by leaving open nearly 600 soon-to-be vacant jobs, administrators said Tuesday.
Rick Cost, the school system's chief financial officer, stressed that all of the vacancies are due to retirements and normal attrition.
A hiring freeze will remain in effect, though the district expects to hire more than 50 new teachers based on a projected enrollment increase of 692 students, far fewer than the yearly norm for the system of nearly 163,000 students.
The budget, which is effective for the fiscal year starting July 1, will be publicly unveiled this week as Superintendent J. Alvin Wilbanks and school board members begin a series of community meetings.
It calls for $1.2 billion to be spent on general operations, down $60.6 million from this year.
A large share of the projected shortfall is attributed to the housing crisis and falling home values. As a result, the school system, which depends on state/federal funds to cover 58 percent of its costs and local money to cover 42 percent, expects property tax revenues to be down $36 million, or 7.4 percent, Cost said.
School systems across the state have been hit hard by this slump. In four years, Gwinnett has lost about $133 million in revenue, Cost said.
Wilbanks' recommendation for two furlough days would make for a projected savings of $10.4 million. For a starting teacher with a bachelor's degree, the two unpaid days will cost about $200 each, reducing annual salary to $37,421.
If approved, this will be the fourth straight year that most of the school system's employees have had unpaid furlough days.
By leaving vacant about 585 jobs, the district is expected to save about $43 million. The superintendent's recommendations also include:
- Eliminating 54 central office positions and continuing the district-level hiring freeze for a projected $2.7 million savings;
- Cutting district-level operating expenses by 2.5 percent across the board, with the exception of fuel, utilities, school allotments and instructional materials, for a projected savings of $1.6 million;
- Reducing employer contributions to the amply funded Gwinnett Retirement System by $19 million, a move that the district says will not change benefits for current or future retirees;
- Reallocating $7.8 million that could have been used for step raises for teachers and putting it toward the projected shortfall.
The budget does not require a property tax increase. The school system has not raised taxes for the last seven years because, in part, the system’s main millage rate is 19.25, just shy of the 20 mill maximum allowed.
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