Year in review: Schools took a hit through budget wrangling this year

When it comes to the San Juan Basin west of Taos, the scope of oil and gas development is obvious, with roads and machinery spidered across the arid New Mexican landscape. And when it comes to the state budget, the scope of that industry is just as obvious.

And state coffers are feeling the crunch with oil and gas development in New Mexico trending away from its boom.

Lawmakers convened in October to try to fill a budget shortfall of more than $600 million, largely accomplishing the task at the expense of budgets in every realm of government — including schools.

School budgets weren’t necessarily healthy before the legislative session. The Taos school district budget has dropped from $21.4 million in 2013 to about $18 million (mostly due to a steady loss of students). In Questa, the state helps to keep the district afloat with emergency money.

Several funding packages were proposed during the chaotic legislative session. On the high end, Taos schools could have lost $416,000.

Jockeying to spare education the worst possible cuts, dozens of superintendents took to Santa Fe to advocate for their students, staffs and classrooms.

“There’s just no way this can work,” Taos Superintendent Lillian Torrez said at the time.

Gov. Susana Martinez vetoed $22 million in education money from the final budget fix when it came to her desk. She said cutting that money “would be to abandon our goals in education reform and to abandon our schools and students as they strove to meet them.”

But the veto didn’t exempt schools from their own budget woes.

Valerie Trujillo, superintendent of the Questa Independent School District, told The Taos News that her district has to contend with the other budget cuts, like 1.5 percent to the “state equalization guarantee distribution” (SEG) — which accounts for more than 90 percent of a school district’s annual operational revenue.

When all was said and done, Trujillo learned her district wouldn’t get about $65,000. In Taos, the final cut stood at $292,000.

“From a certain perspective, it was good that the [education] funding remain,” said Sen. Carlos Cisneros, D-Questa, in October. “The dilemma is that this leaves us having to make cuts in other areas of the government. Come January, we’re going to have a greater shortfall than anticipated.”

With 2017 knocking, educators are again sounding the alarm.

State lawmakers have made it clear that when the Legislature reconvenes in the new year, education budgets will mostly likely have to face the state’s scalpel again.

A few different ideas to fix the state’s budget with education cuts were brought up during a December meeting of the Legislative Finance Committee.

Beyond putting a moratorium on new charter schools (an idea that’s been floated in Santa Fe for several years, previously unrelated to any budget shortfalls) and consolidating small districts, lawmakers proposed taking money from the cash balances (saving accounts) of districts — an idea revived from the special session.

The proposed sweeps would take any money that exceeds the recommended percentage of a district’s day-to-day operating budget.

New Mexico Sen. John Arthur Smith, D-Deming, said the sweeps could add up to $100 million.

Bobby Spinelli, finance director for the Taos district, said in September that the state has taken money from school districts’ bank accounts before. He said a similar tactic was used during the administration of former Gov. Bill Richardson.

“The mistake they made … was they took away a district’s ability to manage their own money. Now they’re talking about doing the same thing. It didn’t work then and it’ll backfire if they do it again,” Spinelli said.

Torrez said sweeps unfairly punish districts — like Taos — that have been frugal enough to build up a modest savings.

“The harder you work, the more you lose,” she said.

Still, Torrez is determined that “classrooms and programs not feel the pinch.” She said the district is benefited by more than 1,000 locals donating their time and energy via nonprofits, professional development, support and direct volunteering.

Those relationships and the generosity they’re based on are sure to become even more valuable after the next legislative session.