School Budget Looks Good For Now

Next year’s school budget looks fine – for now.

Thursday night, Superintendent Jerome Belair presented a preliminary budget for 2012-13 His proposal did cut two teaching positions through attrition, but they were cut because enrollment was down, he said. There were no cuts to any programs.

But Belair presented the budget with a flat appropriation for health insurance, as the cost for health insurance for next year won’t be determined until the middle of February. The question is not if the cost of health insurance will increase, but rather how much, he said.

“The elephant in the room is health insurance,” he said. “There is no doubt costs will increase.”

What It All Means

increased $1.6 million from the 2009-10 school year to the 2010-11 school year. That was the primary reason for Belair said during the spring’s budget hearings.

Belair said he put the health insurance cost flat because there is no point in guessing at a number that won’t be accurate. That would create an unnecessary scare that might not even happen, he said.

“It doesn’t make sense to make decisions without the real numbers,” Belair said.

When the numbers do come in, the Board of Education may have to rework the budget, he said.

Why The Unknown On Insurance

The town is self-insured, instead of having a traditional health insurance plan. In a traditional health insurance plan, the company agrees to cover all health costs for a set fee, while with self-insurance the town pays for claims as they come in.

The town currently put its health insurance plan out to bid to see if they can get a cheaper rate.  The bids will not come in until late January, Belair said.

Also, because the board is self-insured, projections can change. Not until February will the town have a better idea of how much health insurance will cost, and even then it is just an estimate, he said.

The bottom line is if health insurance costs continue to increase, either taxes will have to rise or programs will be cut, Waterford Finance Director Rudie Beers said. Many people think taxes have increased because of the , and while that’s partially true, it is really the increasing cost of health insurance and that really hurt, Beers said.

“It’s the unknowns of the budget, the health insurance and retirement, that’s causing the unexpected increases,” Beers said. “That’s what really effects us.”

Editor's Note: The original article assumed the budget at $44.2 million. The budget is lower than that, and has room for health insurance increases. It has been corrected in the article.