School division uses surplus to shore up budget

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This article was published 11/03/2022 (1497 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

THE River East Transcona School Division is drawing from its accumulated surplus to hire enough staff to address growing enrolment demands and avoid program cuts in 2022-23.

The board — the second-largest in the province, with more than 16,900 students in 42 schools — approved a $215-million budget for the upcoming school year this week.

“Despite working with insufficient funding from the government, the board was able to maintain programs and services for this year, but using accumulated surplus is not sustainable,” said Brianne Goertzen, chairwoman of the school board’s finance committee, in a release Thursday.

The division concluded a balanced budget that will add nearly 11 classroom, resource and student services teaching positions to address growing enrolment, regardless of a shortfall of more than $900,000 in provincial funding for staff wages, the release said.

The northeast Winnipeg division warned cuts may be unavoidable in 2023-24 if the board’s ability to raise the local property education tax remains frozen and “provincial funding continues to lag behind operational costs and inflation.”

The division noted its status as the metro district with the lowest per-pupil spending.

“The government is balancing its budget on the backs of students,” said Goertzen, trustee for Ward 3 in RETSD.

Spiking inflation, COVID-19 related expenses and staff salary settlements have proven to be financial pressures for boards across the province throughout budget planning season.

The provincial government is providing divisions with one-time grants to address both pandemic and wage pressures. The total annual operating funding earmarked for school divisions across Manitoba in 2022-23, however, does not keep pace with inflation.