Lack of Revenue Assignment | Top Universities

Lack of revenue for local districts has been a topic in the media of North Florida. Both Clay and Duval school districts are embroiled with their county governments concerning taxation to increase revenue for education costs.  According to Chan and Morris (2018), “Over 80% of public school revenues in the U.S. are generated from state income and sales taxes and local property taxes.”  Both Clay and Duval are requesting funds to renovate aging and deteriorating facilities, as well as new construction. These revenue issues call to question the budgetary planning that led to these shortfalls.

Line-Item Budgeting

According to our text, “Fiscal stewardship is of the utmost importance and as a responsibility that no administrators should take lightly” (Cunningham & Cordeiro, 2015).  Budgetary planning must employ insight and research based on previous expenditures and future trends. Line-item budgeting is the most widely used approach for schools. This system allows the allocation of money to be shifted from one line to another, based on current needs and changing demands. In their Educational Planning article, Chan and Morris (2018) discuss the methods finance officials use to acquire up-to-date information utilizing trend analysis of data to perform a financial forecast. This forecast allows for adjustment to the overall budget form year to year.

Tough Choices

Line-item budgeting does require that tough choices be made to trim unspent items and shore up required resources. Baker (2016), clarifies that dilemma in his article, Does Money Matter in Education?  He agrees that resources such as smaller class sizes, early childhood programs, and competitive teacher pay are expensive, but they are linked to increased student outcomes. He went on to say that teacher’s wages affect the potential of quality of those who may enter the education profession and their longevity in the field. An increase in funding through the implementation of local sales tax can provide funding to meet the current and future needs of a district. Baker (2016) cautions that “…money can be spent poorly and have limited influence on school quality. On the flip side, money can be spent well and have a substantive positive influence.”  Get English homework help today