Some years, when Gloucester school officials would come forward with a proposed budget increase, there seemed to be a reasonable context to it.
Much of the increase could be pegged to rising health care costs, a need to add teachers for specific programs, or perhaps energy costs or other expenses that sometimes extended beyond the School Committee's control.
Education backers would at least have some justification in telling Mayor Carolyn Kirk and City Council that spending any less than the requested amount would only hurt "the kids."
Not this year. Under the proposed Gloucester school budget for fiscal 2013, which begins July 1, city school costs would rise by either 5 percent or 6 percent, depending on which projections are ultimately used. Yet there are no plans outlined for hiring additional instructors, no projected hike in personnel health insurance costs. Indeed, first-year Superintendent Richard Safier deserves credit for already vowing that, with three key district-wide administrators retiring, only two of the positions — those of curriculum chief and special education director — are being filled. That step should mark a savings of roughly $100,000.
Yet, through personnel salary and benefit increases — and with no plans at this point for any staff reductions for a school district that continues to serve fewer and fewer students — the school district is projecting an expected $255,194 jump to cover the cost of collective bargaining settlements, on top of $249,667 in settlement increases from fiscal 2012. Then, there's a projected $192,886 budget increase to cover salary "step and track" raises — you know, the little contracted raises and bonuses teachers collect for advancing from one year to the next, on top of any bargained "annual" increase.
There are, of course, legitimate increases, notably the need to tuition students to outside special education programs.
But when city officials and taxpayers look at what, right now, stands as a potential school bottom-line spending plan of between $35.5 million and $38.5 million, try not to laugh too hard or cry out when someone inevitably suggests these added budget dollars are "for the kids."
There's a long way to go before this budget becomes even close to acceptable.
