Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What does it mean to have a budget shortfall?
A: It means that the amount of money that we expect to receive from funding sources (state, federal, local) for the 2009-2010 school year will not be enough to pay for everything the district currently pays for. Our projected income falls short of projected expenses.

Q: How much is the projected shortfall?
A: Based on the governor's initial proposed budget, the minimum estimated shortfall to Federal Way Public Schools is $5 million. The state house and senate still have to weigh in with their proposals. With the state budget deficit standing at around $5 billion, schools may be asked to absorb larger cuts before the process is over. We will not know for certain until the state legislature adjourns and the governor signs the final state budget at the end of April.

Q: What does that mean? Is there somewhere you can get the money?
A: Just like when a family's personal budget is short, FWPS must balance the district budget by either cutting costs or increasing income. Because our income is based on state and federal formulas and on levy funds that must be approved by voters, there are very few, if any options for increasing our income in 2009-2010. That means we will have to find ways to cut costs in order to balance the budget. 

Q: What about reserves?
A: In the past, good fiscal management has allowed FWPS to set aside money where and when we could, maintaining our reserves (our savings account) within Board Policy 7143. Because fund balance can only be spent once, if fund balance is spent to support on-going costs, the pain of reductions is carried over multiple years. Careful consideration will be given to what part, if any, our fund balance will play in presenting a balanced budget to the Board.

Q: Why is there a shortfall?
A: Quite simply, the State of Washington is facing a $5 billion shortfall -- public education is about 45% of the State's budget and while we are the only constitutionally protected State program, we expect that the State of Washington will reduce it's level of support to ALL school districts in the state.

Q. Where does the money to fund Federal Way Public Schools come from?
A: State budget (72%), Federal budget (8%) and local levy funds (16%) where the voters in the school district have agreed to tax themselves to help pay for schools. The final 3% comes from programs that are self-supporting such as school lunch programs and drivers' education.

Q: How does the State of Washington decide how much they give us?
A: It's a complex formula that – unfortunately - is not the same for every school district. Currently FWPS is one of lowest funded school districts in the state.
The state budget primarily pays for what is considered "basic education." The definition of basic education was set in the 1970's. Education and our populations have changed significantly since then, but the state's formula has not been adjusted to take into account things like technology needs or specialized programs.
FWPS has been involved in ongoing efforts to get the state to fund our district fairly, including filing a lawsuit to force fair funding.

Q: Would a favorable outcome in the Fair School Funding lawsuit change the budget shortfall?
A: The Fair School Funding is currently awaiting a trial date with the Washington State Supreme Court. We expect to have oral arguments scheduled in Spring, 2009. It is most likely that even when the Court's decision is final, it will require legislative action for implementation. The earliest this may occur will be during the 2010 Legislative session for changes no earlier than 2010-11.

Q: Where does Federal Way schools spend money?
A: Education requires involvement of a lot of people, primarily teachers. Approximately 85% of our budget goes toward paying people to ensure that we have high quality teachers and staff. In the past year, personnel costs have risen by 9% due to increases in health benefits and pension contributions, contract negotiations and state-mandated wage levels. For each 1% increase in labor costs, approximatley $750,000 is unfunded. The other 15% is spent on everything else: books, technology, building maintenance, supplies, bus fuel, liability insurance and paper. As every family in the district knows, the cost of food, utilities, fuel, and supplies has risen dramatically. State education funding simply has not kept pace.
Another way to break down our expenses: These percentages (at this level of rounding) are unchanged from 2006-07

Q: How do we know FWPS is spending wisely?
A: Financial stewardship in our district is strong. Comprehensive state audits in recent years have consistently found that our finances are well managed. Data from the state Superintendent of Public Schools shows that our district uses a larger percent of our budget for classroom programs than any other district of comparable size. Ratings from Standard and Poor's and from Moody's are common methods of assessing how well public agencies manage their money. Recent ratings of Aa3 from Moody's and AA- from Standard and Poors confirm that the district is fiscally well-managed.

Q: Will you lay off staff, administrators or teachers or close schools in order to balance the budget?
A: Nothing has been decided yet, but we will be looking at all options. Over the past 8 years, FWPS has cut $14 million from the budget. The school board and the superintendent firmly believe that what resources we have should go to the classrooms. This means we will first look at cuts in operations and administration. However, the truth of the matter is that we have reduced or eliminated nearly everything that can be cut without making cuts in the classroom.

Q: Where have cuts been made in the past?
A: Past cuts have eliminated programs such as elementary school band and orchestra, increased charges for sports participation, and forced the elimination of some teaching and classified positions, including librarians. We've made extensive cuts to support services also, including reducing custodians, department staff and administrators. Currently, just one maintenance employee mows the grass at all of nearly 40 schools and buildings, the business office staff has been reduced by 22%, and staff and services at the former Community Resource Center at the Commons have been drastically reduced.

Q: Are there areas where spending has increased in the past few years?
A: State mandated salary increases, pension increases and higher health care contibutions is the most significant area where costs have increased. While currently more moderate, we have also seen increasing utility, fuel and food costs. Despite inadequate school funding, the state and federal governments have set firm timelines for increasing student achievement and we have continued to increae our professional teaching staff to meet our students' needs. FWPS has demonstrated commitment to help our students succeed and perform well on mandated state tests. To do so, we have invested in the cost of expanding existing successful programs and adding programs that show great promise. These include: Cambridge Preparatory Academy, AVID, Algebraic Thinking, the TAF Academy and Air Force JROTC.

Q. What about the money from the bond issue we passed in May 2007? Can't you use that money to help make up the shortfall?
A. Because the money raised by issuing bonds is designated to capital improvements, it cannot be re-directed to operating expenses.
There’s a saying: "Bonds buy bricks, levies buy books." Bonds pay for larger capital projects while levies support the day-to-day expenses of running our schools. Both bond and levy dollars are generated through property taxes.

Bond funded capital projects will continue despite the budget shortfall. For updates on capital projects see the bond info page.

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