Finance – Page 2 – FiscalShare

Category: Finance

Proposition 98 Forecasting and Finagling

Dear aspiring school business leader, My recent post on California’s Proposition 13 was for you. This post is about Proposition 98. Together, these represent the two voter initiatives that you MUST understand. Start with the Wikipedia entries for both. This gives you a general overview. Then read the Legislative Analyst’s Prop 98 Analysis. If you find this intolerably dull,

January 19, 2014 Short URLCalifornia school districts, Education funding, government, government spending, lcff, local control funding formula, Management, Proposition 13, Proposition 98, public school finance, public schools, school district, school district business, school finance, voter initiativeFinance, Government, Laws and Regulations, Local Control Funding Formula, Public Schools

How Bad is too Bad? How Much is Enough?

Click on this map for some interesting data, courtesy of BestEducationDegrees.com. The statistics for my state, California, are particularly bleak. Given the current hoopla about the new funding formula, I thought it might be useful to step back and ask a more fundamental question. Does the state collect enough revenue to support education to the extent that

January 18, 2014 Short URLanti-tax, Arnold Schwarzenegger, California, California school districts, deck chairs on the Titanic, education, Education funding, government, government spending, Jerry Brown, lcff, Local Control Funding Formual, Proposition 13, Proposition 30, public education, public school finance, public schools, role of government, school district business, school districts, school finance, tax, taxes, too much taxFinance, Government, Laws and Regulations, Public Schools

Not Usual

He is a senior silicon valley executive. She is an analyst in a governmental agency. Their third grade daughter cannot read. He is an abusive deadbeat dad who hides his assets and pays no child support. She is a low wage earner barely scraping by. Their eighth grade daughter is one of the top students in

January 17, 2014 Short URLbest practice, business, California school districts, education, Education Code, Emanuel Derman, Financial modeling, John Deasy, LCAP, lcff, LCFF regulations, Local Conrtol Funding Formula, Local Control Accountability Plan, Management, Nassim Taleb, public education, public school finance, public schools, school district business, school financeFinance, Government, Laws and Regulations, Local Control Funding Formula, Public Schools

Your Tax Dollars at Work! Headlines to Avoid

Mrs. Smith came into my office. She was angry, but controlled. Her practiced smile was plastered on top of gritted teeth. “Teachers just don’t get paid enough. Every now and then we have to do something nice for them.” What was this all about? My staff had rejected Principal Smith’s expense report where she was seeking

January 16, 2014 Short URLbest practice, California, gift of public funds, government, government spending, inappropriate expenses, Management, perks, public education, public funds, public school finance, public schools, school district business, school finance, tax, taxes, teachers, teaching professionAccounting, Finance, Government, Laws and Regulations, Management, Procedures and Practices, Public Schools

Size Matters

In the course of my career I have occasionally heard some unsavory “us versus them” talk. Teachers versus non teachers Certificated versus classified Management versus non-management School versus district Parents versus school administration Some discussions of the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) resort to this rhetoric, most notably the “school versus district” polarity. I have previously mentioned the

January 15, 2014 Short URLaccounting, best practice, business, California, California school districts, data, fairshare4kids, icr, indirect cost, indirect cost rate, lcff, local control funding formula, Management, return on investment, school administration, school district, school district business, school districts, school finance, us versus them, us vs themData, Finance, Government, Local Control Funding Formula, Management, Productivity, Public Schools

Budgeting Blindfolded as Art Form

Last Thursday the governor’s budget proposal for 2014-15 was unveiled. My loyal readers may have noticed that I let the occasion pass by without a peep out of me. The truth is that all of you devoted school district business officials are still budgeting blindfolded. Estimates for individual district revenues will be developed. Programs will be implemented and costs

January 13, 2014 Short URLbudget, budget assumptions, budget proposal, budgeting, business officials, CBO, CFO, economic forecasts, economy, forecasting, governor's budget, lcff, local control funding formula, work drama, work stressFinance, Government, Local Control Funding Formula, Public Schools

Excel Solver for Expense Transfers

Thank you Pronger for your post about the Excel solver function. Follow this link to view his explanation and instructions. The solver function is especially useful if you deal with a multitude of funding sources such as state and local grants, federal awards and bond funds. Each restricted funding source has very particular spending rules and most have

December 31, 2013 Short URLaccounting, Accounts Payable, analysis, best practice, data, Excel, Excel solver, Excel spreadsheet, Expense, funding sources, Funds, General Journal, government spending, governmental accounting, information technology, Invoice, Microsoft, Microsoft Excel, nonprofit accounting, problem solving, public school finance, school district business, school districts, school finance, solver, solver function in Excel, spreadsheetsAccounting, Finance, Government, Public Schools, School Construction

The Money Grab

A recent video accuses “special interests” and “school district insiders” of trying to get their hands on money intended for high needs students. Sigh. Let’s stop using charged words when important decisions about the future of education are at stake. The terms “insiders” and “special interests” are derogatory. They imply that teachers and district officials are trying to hoodwink parents. Seemingly, if you

December 28, 2013 Short URLbest practice, budget, business, California school districts, district officials, education, government, government spending, lcff, local control funding formula, money grab, School corruption, school district, school district business, school district officials, school finance, special interests, unionsLocal Control Funding Formula, Public Schools, School District Jobs

Governmental Cost Recovery

I have heard the mantra again and again “we don’t make a profit” meaning, if we charge for services it’s only on a cost recovery basis. Yet I just read that Inyo COE charges a flat 7% to its charter schools for providing business services. If a charter school now receives significantly more funding under the Local Control Funding Formula,

December 25, 2013 Short URLaccounting, analysis, best practice, business, business services, Cafeteria Fund, California Schools Accounting Manual, charter school, Charter Schools, cost accounting, Cost recovery, CSAM, education, Education Code, Excel, fee for service, fund balance, government, government spending, Inyo County Office of Education, Inyo Register, lcff, overcharging, public school finance, public schools, school district, school district business, school districts, school finance, surplusAccounting, Cost Accounting, Government, Local Control Funding Formula

‘Tis the Season for…the 14-15 Budget

The California Budget Project has posted a useful article on the 14-15 budget debate, which begins with the release of the Governor’s budget on or before January 10. Also of interest on the CBP blog is their post on the budget process. And when I say that these links are useful and interesting, I mean that

December 20, 2013 Short URLanalysis, analyst, budget, budget analyst, California, career development, employee engagement, employment, government, governor's budget, hiring, local control funding formula, public education, public school finance, public schools, school district, school district business, school districts, school finance, workFinance, Government, Local Control Funding Formula, Management, Public Schools, School District Jobs

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