In a very brief, special meeting on Wednesday, June 17, Cobre school board members, all five present, along with Superintendent Robert Mendoza and Frank Ryan, financial director, met to approve the 2015-2016 budget and get it on its way to the Public Education Department (PED) in Santa Fe.
In the closed portion of the meeting, which started at 5:07 and lasted over two hours, Toy Sepulveda, board president, said they had discussed personnel issues, the athletic handbook, the food service proposal and the budget. There had been no decisions made, he said.
The total operating budget for the coming year comes to $12,428,140. Some of the major breakdowns are Instruction, Student Support Services, Instructional Support Services, General Administration Support Services, School Administration Support Services, Central Services, Operation and Maintenance of Plant, Student Transportation, and other Support Services.
The Code 11000 instructional portion, with sub-codes, list salaries and compensations, benefits, some employee and student travel, expenses and similar costs. Sub-code 1000, Instruction, projects a figure of $6,289,760. The variety of support services, sub-codes 2100 through 2700, show a projected amount of $6,138,380, for a total of $12,428,140, making up the operational budget.
Checks written on these categories make up the financial report that is given monthly and which, the board looks over and approves. There are other funds that are also important to running the school, but Cobre has them under different codes, such as the 13000 for student transportation, or 21000 for food service. The transportation figure is projected at $677,165 for the year, and food service, $1,156.190.
Federal Flow-through Grants are given a coding of 24101 or greater, with the sub-code 1000 showing they are instructional. At sub-code 2700, student transportation shows a projected amount of $17,750. The budget shows the Flow-throughs total for all the 24000 items at a projected amount of $868,840.
Another category is Federal Direct Grants, starting at 25000. Again, few of these incoming sources amount to a million dollars. State and local taxes also have their numbers.
Debt service, code 41000, sub-code 5000, is a larger figure, projected at $2,455,940 for the year.
The projected amount of all these "budgets" is $20,788,717, but the one that most concerns the board is that $12 million; plus operational budget. The board goes over it closely.
Are these figures cut in stone? They change constantly, as it is impossible to predict just what is needed from the outset. Repairs become necessary; student enrollments change, teachers are hired or retire, and each figure matters but changes the individual accounts. The State allows adjustments to keep some sort of balance going, and at most meetings a BAR or budget adjustment request is made; sometimes there may be a half-dozen. But the financial directors keep the system in reasonable balance and it works in the end.
Near the end of the fiscal year, BARs are made to show zero balances to "clean-up" the books and get ready for the new year. New budgets are sent to the State for review and districts must wait to see if their work was totally accepted or if changes need to be made. With changes, some work is redone and the board must formally accept the new one and send it back to the state. If the State thinks a district is at risk in certain areas, it demands monthly reports instead of quarterly ones, until the State decides a district can make it alone.
Later, Mendoza said there is another report that helps boards to assess where they are on spending; the superintendent can give them a percent-expense report which tells what part of the year's budget has been spent, and the board knows if the funds are holding over the months; when the year is half over, 50 percent is a good number. Each month would be worth a certain percentage figure.
If spending is at 55 or 60 percent, and the year is not half over, that is a signal to slow down or look for funds from another area and do a transfer, or BAR. He said it is a handy tool and it is summitive, showing the pace of many or all key areas in the budget. He said he gives this to the board on a regular basis.
Cobre has been through the process every year and the work goes on. Money is always tight, but kids get educated and school spirit runs high. When Superintendent Mendoza recommended that the board adopt the 2015-2016 budget, they did and then adjourned. Total time, including flag pledges and the usual actions, was about six minutes.
The next regular meeting will be Monday, June 22, at the District Office. The open meeting will start at 7:00 p.m. (or soon after) and it will be business as usual.