Rochester School Leaders Call Potential School Funding Cuts 'Devastating'

Earlier this week, Superintendent David Pruneau said he hoped to see "some relief" from the financial challenges facing public school districts in the near future.

His statement coincided with the Rochester school district adopting an amendment that balanced the budget for this school year.

Today, that hoped-for relief seemed a little less likely.

Gov. Rick Snyder on Thursday morning proposed a state budget that included cuts for schools: a $300 per pupil funding reduction (in addition to the $170 per pupil cuts that were already planned). The $470-per-pupil reduction would save the state $452.5 million, Snyder said.

The cuts were part of the 2012 budget proposal that Snyder will submit to the state Legislature. The proposed school funding cuts were among other planned cutbacks in the $46 billion budget. Cuts to revenue-sharing for municipalities and the phasing out of some personal income tax deductions were also proposed.

For the Rochester school district, the proposed per pupil reduction represents a 5 percent cut. Leaders called the potential cuts "devastating."

"While we appreciate Gov. Snyder's attempt to have a budget in place by June 1 ... this reduction, coupled with an expected 5 percent increase in the retirement rate, will have a devastating impact on public schools," said community relations manager Debbie Hartman, who issued a statement on behalf of school administration. 

"Although Rochester Community Schools is positioned to withstand this initial blow as we assess the state budget landscape over the next 16 months, we cannot sustain the erosion of public school funding indefinitely."

The Board of Education will begin budget discussions in March. They will coincide with the district's hiring of a new superintendent to replace Pruneau, who is retiring this summer.

"This day should have happened a long time ago," said Snyder during the address that was televised live on Michigan Government Television. "We shouldn't waste an opportunity. Not doing this would be kicking the can down the road. That's not why I got elected and it's not why you got elected. A lot of us are going to have to make sacrifices.

"The reason to do this isn't to avoid the negative. It's to jump to the positive."

After the governor spoke Thursday, state Budget Director John Nixon focused on education, urging adoption of a system that focuses on early childhood through higher education — under Snyder's plan, some community college funding would be lumped into the schools budget.

Nixon said  K-12 districts could avoid instructional cuts if they adopt an 80-20 employer-employee split on their healthcare contributions. He said that would generate $300 million in savings.

"We feel this a very defensive plan that doesn't have to impact the classroom," he told lawmakers. "We know that's the critical area that needs to be maintained in school funding."

Hartland Patch editor Christofer Machniak contributed to this report.