School Board budget includes salary bonuses

The St. Martin Parish school district budget approved last week by the school board projects salary supplement payments of $3,200 for professional employees and $2,630 for paraprofessionals during the 2014-15 fiscal year.
The supplements were included in the $71.2 million general fund, the $16.8 million sales tax and the $4.6 million food services budgets approved during a special board meeting last week.
The supplements will be paid from revenues collected through the school district’s two one-cent sales taxes, providing revenues are sufficient.
While board officials are confident that there will be enough money to cover the payouts, CFO Casey Broussard did point out a worrisome trend in collections. She reported that sales tax collections had risen about 13 percent for three successive years, but the increase for the past fiscal year had slipped to 5 percent.
But both sales tax funds project healthy balances by June 30, 2015.
Although some board members suggested the supplements be spread evenly over 10 or 12 months, it was finally agreed to schedule the payouts as follows:
•September: $500 to professionals and paraprofessionals.
•November: $1,000 to professionals and $715 to paraprofessionals.
•April: $700 to both categories.
•May: $1,000 and $715.
Board president Russel Foti suggested that part of the supplemental pay be based on attendance, citing the problems involved in finding substitutes when employees miss work.
Aaron Flegeance of District 3 agreed, saying “Lots of teachers, bus drivers and others work hard, yet some take days off just because they’re there to go shopping of visit friends.”
Superintendent Dr. Lottie Beebe also expressed concern, saying that will be a focus of her administration. “It’s a real challenge,” she admitted, “But it’s something we’ll probably have to address legislatively.”

Food Services
One budget area of growing concern is the food services, or school cafeteria, program. For the fiscal year the program is projecting a deficit of almost $600,000 despite an infusion of $820,000 in general fund money.
Claire Blanchard, supervisor of food services, pointed out that food costs have risen due to new federal regulations. “Another big factor is the rise in the price of corn and fuel,” she added
“And to comply with the Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act, it’s costing us 20 cents per meal while the federal supplement amounts to only 6 cents,” she said.
She also pointed out that the lunch fund has been paying the health benefits for lunchroom retirees. “And we currently have more retirees than active employees,” she said.
The lunch fund has also been covering the salary supplements for its workers, but beginning this year those, as well as the retiree health premiums, will come from the sales tax and general funds.
“But I still don’t think we (the lunch program) will ever break even,” she told board members.