Underly Announces Candidacy for State Superintendent
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | May 7, 2020
From WisPolitics.com
Pecatonica Area School District Superintendent Jill Underly announced today she’s running for state schools superintendent in 2021.
Underly said in her announcement she has more than 20 years of experience as an educator and administrator in rural and urban districts. She’s been with the Pecatonica school district since 2015.
She described herself as “a first-generation college graduate from a working-class union household” who knows the “value of strong public schools and the inspiring power of great educators.”
Underly previously worked as a federal programs consultant and assistant director at DPI and an academic adviser at UW-Madison.
Superintendent Carolyn Stanford Taylor, appointed by Gov. Tony Evers to replace him as head of the agency, isn’t seeking a full term. The primary, if needed, will be Feb. 16.
Sachin Chheda of Nation Consulting is running Underly’s campaign.
See the release here.
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State Law Waivers and Requests Available in Light of School Closures
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | May 7, 2020
From the Legal Side…
In its most recent School Law FYI, the BoardmanClark Law Firm focuses on state law waivers and requests available in light of the COVID-19 school closures.
The SAA regularly receives these legal updates and we believe this is valuable information for SAA members. We are distributing this update to SAA members with the permission of the BoardmanClark Law Firm. The information in this update is no substitute for consulting with your district legal counsel, and we encourage you to do so.
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LFB: Tax Collections Down Significantly in April
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | May 6, 2020
From WisPolitics.com …
State tax collections dropped significantly in April as Wisconsin felt the impact of COVID-19, which will “undoubtedly decrease’’ previous projections the general fund would finish the fiscal year with a surplus of nearly $1.1 billion, according to a new LFB memo.
Still, Legislative Fiscal Bureau Director Bob Lang wrote to lawmakers today it is difficult to get a true handle on the state’s fiscal picture because the tax filing deadline has been pushed back to July. What’s more, several factors may soften the blow on the state’s bottom line.
The state took in more than $1.1 billion in tax collections last month, $870 million less than it collected for April 2019. For the first 10 months of the fiscal year, tax collections are $313 million less than the same period for 2018-19.
Along with the impact of COVID-19 on the economy, the filing extension impacted the April collections. The month is typically one of the state’s highest for tax collections with the usual April 15 filing deadline.
In January, LFB had projected the state to finish the fiscal year on June 30 with nearly $1.1 billion in the general fund. In today’s memo, Lang wrote “that balance will undoubtedly decrease” due to the drop in April collections, along with an expected dip in May and June as well. Still, the full extent won’t be known until after the July 15 filing deadline.
He also laid out several factors that could mitigate the expected drop:
*in January, LFB projected a surplus in state revenues would result in a $189 million transfer to the budget stabilization fund from the general fund. That is unlikely to happen now.
*the Evers administration last week announced a 5 percent cut to the GPR operations budgets of state agencies, a move expected to save about $70 million.
*the nearly $2 billion the state is expected to receive under the federal CARES Act is designated for expenditures incurred due to the pandemic and can’t be used to replace drops in state revenue. Still, Lang noted there are “ongoing discussions that the guidelines may be modified or that additional federal funds will be made available under subsequent legislation to allow for the replacement of revenue shortfalls.”
*the rainy day fund will have a balance of $655 million at the end of the 2019-20 fiscal year. That could be tapped with legislation allowing the money to be accessed.
Read the memo here.
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School District Fund Balance Info/Talking Points
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | May 6, 2020
There is currently lots of interest in the issue of school district fund balances. As you know, the Wisconsin Policy Forum has just released a report on school finance uncertainty that includes significant discussion of school fund balances. Also, it is my understanding that several weeks ago both the Wisconsin Department of Revenue and the Legislative Fiscal Bureau asked DPI for information on Wisconsin school fund balances.
The SAA has put together a succinct document on school fund balance for members, largely in the form of talking points. We also recommend that school superintendents and business officials review their district’s annual cash flow projection to use in responding to any inquiries on the fund balance issue.
We encourage members to discuss these issues with your boards of education, your news media, and your public. Thank you.
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Uncertainty Ahead: School Finances in the Face of COVID-19
By Wisconsin School Administrators Alliance staff | May 6, 2020
The Wisconsin Policy Forum has just released a report entitled, “Uncertainty Ahead: School Finances in the Face of COVID-19”. I believe the title speaks for itself. This is important information released to the media and the public and SAA members should review it carefully. Check it out here.
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