By Hannah Davis
A decrease in revenue has resulted in budget cuts for next fiscal year.
“Most of the cuts will be in salaries and benefits,” Don Perkins, associate vice president of financial services, said. “They will include, to a large extent, full time positions, say for retirees that won’t be filled, or will be filled with adjunct, in the case of faculty it will be adjunct, and this also includes the corresponding benefits.”
Salaries and benefits make up 79 percent of the general fund expenses. The general fund is the primary operating fund, which is financed by local taxes, state aid and tuition, according to Perkins.
The “Board of Trustees Budget Workshop for Fiscal Year 2013-2014” demonstrates that almost two million dollars are expected to be cut from the general fund.
“The budget process now is getting to the point where we really need to have a solid understanding of what our expenses are going to be and what our revenues are going to be, so we can begin the fiscal year,” Joe Sopcich, executive vice president of administrative services – chief financial officer, said.
Another strategy to cut spending is what Perkins calls “basic reconstruction” when employees leave the college and their duties are dispersed to other employees, rather than hiring an individual to fill the position.
“We want to make sure that services aren’t affected,” Sopcich said. “We want to do things as efficiently as possible to keep the same level of service.”
There have also been proposals to raise the mill levy tax to increase revenue at the college.
“They still have some flexibility regarding the mill levy,” Perkins said. “They have to consider very seriously what the impact of that would be if they would not raise the mill, or if they would raise it a different amount. Nevertheless, there are some things we’re only estimating at this point. What will assessed valuation actually be? What will the state actually do? They’re working on it. So that would have some impact.”
Although the mill levy tax may be raised, nothing will be certain until August.
Another decrease in revenue is the declining enrollment at the college. In the 2009-10 fiscal year enrollment increased more than eight percent, due to the economic downturn, but in the fiscal year 2011-12, enrollment decreased almost three percent, and the following fiscal year 2012-13, enrollment decreased three percent. A continuation of this decrease has been projected for next fiscal year, falling another three percent.
“[Declining enrollment] does have an impact on revenue, but it does have an impact on expenses as well,” Perkins said. “So the net of those two is what affects cash. Still, it definitely has an effect in where we need to set the budget for coming years […] We are reducing staff, planning to reduce staff next year, and some of that is reaction to reduced enrollment, some of it is just looking for more efficiency with our operations.”
The changes made will be internal, Perkins said, which shouldn’t affect the experiences of the students.
“I think you always have to remember why we’re here, and we’re here for students, and we’re here for education that will help students advance themselves, be it going onto another institution, getting a job in the workplace, or simply just making sure the student can advance in the direction the student wants to advance,” Sopcich said. “That’s the most important thing. That’s what we do. All this other stuff, all these numbers, goes toward that aim, goes toward that objective.”
Contact Hannah Davis, news editor, at hdavis18@jccc.edu