Budget 2010 — 2011
The annual budget process is an important element of our corporate planning at the OCDSB. The budget is the allocation of resources which support our strategic plan, annual district goals and school improvement planning.
The annual budget process is perhaps the most challenging of all of our corporate planning processes because it brings us to the point where we can no longer focus on what we want to do, but rather what can we afford to do? There are a number of limitations which add to the pressure of the budget process, including, but in no way limited to the fact that almost all school board funding comes by way of provincial grants, the timing of the grants, the complexity of grant formulas and envelope funding, the number of special purpose and ad hoc grants, conflicting timelines between staffing, grant announcements, budget recommendation and budget approval.
Work on the 2010-2011 budget process is already underway. The operating budget for 2009-2010 is $706.4M. The OCDSB is projecting a budget deficit for 2010-2011 in the range of $10-$18M. At this time, we are using $14M as a working number, which represents 2% of our annual budget. Unfortunately, this means that the district must develop strategies to reduce our operating costs and/or increase our revenues in order to provide the same level of service to students.
Students are always our primary focus and we are committed to offering programs and services which challenge all students to achieve their personal best. We make efficient, effective, and innovative use of resources, based on sound planning, and the best available information. The budget allocates available resources to address student needs.
In June 2009, the staff and Board of Trustees made a public commitment to immediately begin work on the 2010-2011 budget to ensure there was ample time to consider budget options in consultation with the community, prior to making final budget decisions.
A report with a detailed list of budget options/suggestions has been prepared for the 14 December 2009 Budget Committee meeting. Click here for a copy of the report (PDF). It is important to note that this report identifies suggested budget reduction options. This is not a definitive list of cuts, but is a framework for public discussion. The impact statements (Click here for Excel Document) provide a detailed explanation on the options and how services could be affected by the changes.
The total value of these reductions is $17.2M and the detailed impact statements are included as an appendix to the report.
We care about your concerns… if you have thoughts or ideas relating to the 2010-2011 budget, we’d like to hear from you. Everyone is welcome to participate in our public Budget Committee meetings. On 25 January 2010, we will be hosting a budget information forum.
We encourage the community to get involved in the budget process. There is plenty of background information on this website that can help develop your understanding of the budget issues. Our budget meetings are public and everyone is welcome to attend. A public budget forum is planned for 25 January 2010. Click here to read a report on the budget consultation process (PDF) The next scheduled meeting of the Budget Committee is Monday 8 February, 2010.
Please use this e-mail to send us your budget feedback throughout our budget process.
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