Halton Catholic school board passes $2.24-M deficit budget

The Halton Catholic District School Board has passed a deficit budget.

Despite finding a net of $1 million in expenditure savings, the board still has a looming $2.24 million budget deficit, which it says it can legally carry over to the 2011-12 school year.

Trustees accepted the deficit budget by a 7-1 vote at Tuesday’s public board meeting; only Oakville trustee Paul Marai voted against it.

The board approved an estimated budget of $311,060,405, a 2.65 per cent increase compared to the 2010-11 budget.

The 2011-12 budget will be filed with the Ministry of Education by the June 30 deadline.

In order for a school board’s budget to be compliant with Ministry of Education’s guidelines, the in-year budget deficit must be less than one per cent of the total operating grants revenue that a board receives from the provincial government, which is the case for the Halton Catholic board.

How the board will eliminate its $2.2 million deficit during the 2011-12 fiscal year is not clear.

Business superintendent and treasurer Paul McMahon told trustees the deficit is partly attributable to $1 million more in expenditures than government funding for the Halton Catholic board’s expanding full-day kindergarten program.

The board only receives money for a set number of its youngest students to be in school all day, but parental demand is far outstripping the available government funding, particularly in the residential boom area of north Halton.

“Milton’s growth is exponential,” said retiring education superintendent Rick MacDonald. “Do you want to tell the families in those communities the first 100 (kindergarten children) can come in (to the program) but the next 100 can’t? I don’t think so.”

Education Director Michael Pautler told trustees the board could choose not to expand certain programs to save money but that it has been a practice of the board in recent years to expand programs when needed as a matter of equity in providing learning opportunities.

“That does come at a cost,” he said.

Aside from full-day kindergarten cost overruns, the other $1.2 million of the deficit is in anticipated lost revenue related to more stringent provincial rules, introduced in March, surrounding school-generated funds.

McMahon added that provincial government grants, which sometimes are topped up during a school year, shouldn’t be relied upon to fix the budget woes.

WGLB: Halton Catholic District School Board: New Policy, Same ...

According to Xtra.ca, Canada's leading source of LGBT news, the board decided to include procedural reports that follow the "Pastoral Guidelines to Assist Students of Same-Sex Attraction." Which is a fancy document essentially saying that gay sex is bad and should be avoided at all costs. If gays cannot live a "moral life," they should "live a life of chastity." How many kids -- in 2011 -- are growing up feeling like they need to change who they are entirely? It's amazing that most everyone on the Halton Catholic District School Board can't see the implications that these policies have on the mental health, self-esteem, general well-being and overall happiness of LGBT youth. Telling a gay kid he can't have gay sex does not mean he won't do it; it means he will do it secretly, with little information to make informed choices, with lots of guilt and shame, and that he will possibly engage in risky behaviors, both in terms of HIV/STI risk, but also physical and emotional safety. I am writing to ask you to please consider allowing students in your district to form groups known as Gay-Straight Alliances. I'm aware that Halton has changed their policy from a blanket ban on GSAs, to a policy that now allows students to form clubs to discuss "equity" issues. But your district still has a ban on the word "gay" when it comes to student groups, and that's entirely unacceptable. As you are likely aware, the Ministry of Education promotes Gay-Straight Alliances as effective tools in eradicated homophobia and building connections between all students. The province of Ontario is committed to educating the public and supporting all youth, including those that are not heterosexual. It is a shame that you are showing your students that some are less worthy based on something that is an ingrained trait. Your policy is homophobic, offensive and un-Canadian.

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