School-Based Budgets
Getting, Spending, & Accounting
Sources of
School District Income

Federal Income
Categorical aid
 Block Grants
 General federal aid
 Flow-through money
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Sources of
School District Income
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State Income
Property taxes
 Sales taxes
 Income taxes
 Foundation Plan
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Levy of a minimum millage
(mill=.001cents) or dollars per
hundred dollars of assessed
valuation in order to receive state aid
Sources of
School District Income
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Local Income
Property taxes
 Sales taxes
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Sources of School
Building Level Income
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Grants
Foundations
Partnerships
Booster groups (Clubs)
Fundraising
3 Keys to Effective
Budgetary Planning
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Educational Plan
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Income Plan
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Based on educational programs
Project anticipated income
Expenditure Plan
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Match income to
programs/activities
Start with highest priority
3 Keys to Efficient Budgeting
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Income-Generation Strategies
Expenditure Controls
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Fiscal Management Information
Systems
Accounting
Dual Activity Income Collection,
Accounting, and Deposit
Paying Bills to Collect Discounts
Zero-Sum Budgeting System
Accounting and Auditing Procedures
Types of Budgeting Systems
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Function/Object Budgeting
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Expenditures are entered under a
coded basic function
Program, Planning, Budgeting,
Evaluating System (PPBES)
Zero-Based Budgeting
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Defend every expenditure
requested on the basis of a
projected cost/benefit
Types of Budgeting Systems
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School-Based Budgeting
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Allocates decision-making power to the
level closest to the operation
Involves a variety of people
Zero-Sum Budgeting
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Makes all persons responsible for
budget matters accountable for
expenditures decisions and for keeping
those decisions within the amount of
money allocated
Still allowing flexibility of expenditure
decisions throughout the fiscal year
School-Based Budgeting:
Players & Resources

Building Principal
Key player
 Make decisions in an autocratic
manner
 Involve teachers and other
employees
 Work with a school-based
management council consisting of
parents, teachers, community
members, classified employees,
etc.
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School-Based Budgeting:
Players & Resources
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Assistant Principals
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Music Director
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Involved in planning, spending, and controlling
local budgetary funds
Manage/control expenditures within income
allocated to purchase music, instruments,
uniforms, transportation costs, etc.
Athletic Director
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Name an individual as budget manager for area
of athletics
Include all costs related to athletic programs
(transportation, coach salaries, officials,
uniforms, ticket takers, police, ambulance,
doctors, and other expenses for meals and
lodgings for athletes and coaches)
School-Based Budgeting:
Players & Resources
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Grade Level/Department Chairs
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Classified Personnel
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Budget manager for grade level or
department
Food Service Director, Director of
Custodial & Maintenance Services
Involve central office staff in
determining the needs for their area
and make these persons responsible
for purchases within the budgetary
allocation
Teachers/Certified Personnel
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Give an integral, important voice in all
aspects of budgetary matters
School-Based Budgeting:
Players & Resources
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Classified Personnel
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Central Office Administrators
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Equipment and supplies necessary to
do their support roles efficiently and
effectively
Provide information on newly available
curriculum materials
Finance Office
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Most important position
Allocates funds, controls expenditures,
and accounting
Must have a relationship that is
interactive, positive, and productive
School-Based Budgeting:
Players & Resources
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Superintendent of Schools
Gets Board of Ed. to approve
school site-based budget
 Obtaining the cooperation of all
central functions
 Defending the decisions made at
the building level
 Initiator, innovator, cheerleader,
and defender of site-based
budgeting
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School-Based Budgeting:
Players & Resources
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Board of Education
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Give formal approval to move to a sitebased process
Convince community members
Defend the process
School Improvement Teams
Kentucky Education Reform Act of
1990
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Ensures fairness in schools-base
decisions which includes school
budgets
Needs Assessments
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Initial step in defining a gap or
discrepancy between what is and
what should or could be
Involve all school building functions
Assess each function
Prioritizing
Proactive
Action Plans to meet identified needs
Focuses on end products/results
Relationships between Central
District & Building Site Levels
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Budget Planning
Budget Expenditures
Lump Sum
 Budgetary allocations
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Budget Accounting
Budget Auditing
Decisions made for Building
Site Level
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School site-based decision
making
Central District Office based
decision making
Shared budgetary decision
making between the school site
and central school district levels
Decisions Related to:
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Personnel
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Budget Planning & Expenditures
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Hiring and placement of employees
Site level- matters most directly affecting
local school’s programs
Central level-Employee benefits, etc.
Other Central & Site Level Matters
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Petition the board of education to make
exceptions or waivers to policies or
standard operating procedures for just
cause.
Budgeting Issues
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Budgeting Calendar
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Projecting # of students
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Cohort survival method of pupil
projection
# of Employees Required
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Subsequent school year
Projected budgets-up to 5 years in the
future
Match # of students with exact
programs they will attend
Equipment, Supplies, Material, &
Services
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Replacement due to damage
Needs Assessment
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First activity to take place for
future budgets
All employees take part
Analyze gaps between what is
and what should be
Prioritize identified needs
Devise action programs to
eliminate existing gaps
Budget Expenditures
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Budgeting Accounting & Budget
Controls
Cannot legally overexpend its
available funds
 Appropriations, transfers,
expenditures, encumbrances, &
unemcumbered balances should
be accurately recorded on a daily
basis
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Budget Expenditures
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Budget Audits
Annual basis
 External auditor or Auditing firm
 Examine balance sheet
 Opinion on the state of the
financial statements
 Recommendations to the board of
education concerning its
accounting records & procedures
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Basic Functions
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Income and resource generation
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Allocation concepts
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Human capital
Cost/benefit analysis
Expenditure concepts
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Combination of federal, state, and local funds
Planning
Fairness
Management concepts
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Needs Assessment
Budgeting
Expenditure Controls
Accounting
Auditing
Case Study
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Needs Assessment
“Need is a gap or discrepancy
between what is and what should
or could be”
 NOT WISHES
 NEEDS
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Case Study
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Determining Cost of Identified Needs
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Projecting the cost of each identified
need for next 5 years
Board’s Actions Related to Each
Need
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Need not approved
Need approved specific program
adopted
Need approved with immediate program
or budget adjustments made to satisfy
need
Need approved when funding is made
available
Case Study
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Projecting Student Population
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5 years
# of students enrolled in each grade for
11 years
Divide the subsequent year’s number of
students by previous years’ and grades’
students
Compute average percentage of
survival for the 10 historical years
Multiply average % of survival against
each previous year to determine the
number of students in each future year
for each grade
Case Study
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Projecting Employee
Requirements (5 yrs. Future)
Use projections of student
population to determine
employees needed for each
category
 Estimate increases
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Health insurance
 Contract negotiations
 Cost of doing business
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Case Study
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Projecting Income Requirements (5
years into future)
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Determine needs
Projected # of students
# of employees needed in each
category
Other expenses of school operation
Cost estimate for operating the schools
THEN DETERMINE income required for
operation
Case Study
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Comprehensive School District
and School Site-Based
Budgeting Procedures
Mixture of parents, citizens,
teachers, Principal
 Annually evaluated and revised
budget
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Case Study
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Budgeting the Procedure
Finalize budget calendar
 Directions for use to
administrators
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Building level
 System level
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Review-2 week period in summer
& update by Principal and Central
Office Administrator