1. BIDDING, BONDING, SCHOOL
BUDGETS AND THE
DEVELOPMENT OF A SOUND
OPERATIONS & MAINTENANCE
FINANCIAL PLAN
December 2010
Presented by:
Stanley W. Polmateer

2. BIDDING
1. WHY DO WE BID?
• To obtain lowest responsible costs
• Required by NYS Finance Law at certain expenditure limit
• Guarantees prudent expenditure of public funds
2. EXPENDITURE LIMITS
• $10,000/yr. per commodity on materials only
• $20,000/yr. per commodity/service on material & labor
3. STATE BIDS AND CONTRACTS
• Can be used to any limit of expenditure as a district bid

3. BIDDING
4. COUNTY BIDS AND CONTRACTS
• Public schools are a subset of county
5. BOCES COOPERATIVE BIDS
• Must have District approval to enter one and approval of
successful bid.
6. INDIVIDUAL BIDS
• Yearly and multi year bids

4. PERFORMANCE BONDS
1. WHY DO WE NEED THEM?
• To guarantee the public a job is completed and in a
quality fashion
• If District does not have a performance bond
guarantee, they are totally liable for the successful
completion of a job, in case of vendor/contractor
failure
2. WHO SUPPLIES THEM?
• Bonding Companies (Ins. Companies)

5. PERFORMANCE BONDS
3. HOW DO THEY WORK WHEN A JOB GOES BAD?
• When contractor goes bankrupt or out of business
• Bond company is called upon to hire and pay for all
remaining work not yet completed or paid for
4. HOW DOES THIS AFFECT CIP’S?
• On Capital Projects SED must be notified of vendor
change due to bond in affect for receiving proper
State Aid

6. KEY FACTORS IN BUDGETING
1. MUST HAVE CREDIBILITY
2. HAVE A SENSE OF REALISM
3. FOLLOWS A LONGER RANGE PLAN
4. EXHIBITS RESPONSIBLE PERFORMANCE
5. FOLLOWS GUIDELINES OF THE DISTRICT
6. IS CONSIDERATE OF CONDITIONS IN THE COMMUNITY
7. COMMUNICATION & COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

7. TWO KINDS OF BUDGETS
1. ANNUAL OPERATIONS & MAINTENANCE
• Based on previous year
• Includes adjustments for justifiable increases
and savings reductions
• Allows for inflationary increases
• Should offer detail to show what makes up the
budget and what a cut will affect

8. TWO KINDS OF BUDGETS
2. CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN (CIP)
• Based on Five Year Plan
• Based on Annual Bldg. Condition Survey
• Should be reviewed with the Board of Education
annually
• Requires voter approval for funding

9. HOW DO YOU MAKE AN
O & M BUDGET?
1. Use indices from surrounding Districts to
comparatively budget manpower by area
• Custodial
• Mechanics
• Grounds
• Security
• Couriers
• Supervision
2. Use a budget template from past years and fill in
with current budget data.

10. HOW DO YOU MAKE AN
O & M BUDGET?
3. Acct. 200 (Equipment) requires special justification
(based on mileage, age, condition)
4. Don’t be afraid to compare contractual services cost
vs. “in-house” services cost when justifying
additional staff or supply inventory

11. HOW DO YOU MAKE A
CIP BUDGET?
1. Follow the Five Year Plan
2. Be consistent in projects presented
3. Timing is EVERYTHING
4. Projects should be identified as:
• Health, Safety or Environmental
• Structurally required
• Instructionally required
• Cost savings justified (energy conservation)
• Administrative request

12. HOW DO YOU MAKE A
CIP BUDGET?
5. Be consistent with Building Condition Survey
6. Review annually with the Superintendent
7. Review annually with the Board of Education

13. VITAL BUDGET TOOLS IN
YOUR TOOL BOX
1. The O & M Budget Template
2. Personnel Indices
3. The Five Year Plan
4. Building Condition Survey

14. THE O & M BUDGET TEMPLATE
1. Organized by account in numerical order (1620 &
1621 accounts)
2. Include sufficient detail (type of service, type of
supply, quantity, etc.)
3. Compare to last years budget (by account) to show
increase or decrease

15. THE FIVE YEAR PLAN
1. Review annually with key administration
2. Consider priorities of projects
3. Be very accurate for first 2 –3 years
4. Years 4 & 5 are not as well defined
5. Should be coordinated with Bldg. Condition Survey
6. Review with Supt. & Bd. of Ed. Annually
7. Publish document annually and distribute to all
participants to the plan

16. BUILDING CONDITION SURVEY
1. Required by Commissioner’s Regulation
2. Review annually for updates with certified individual
3. Must be submitted annually to SED
4. Should be coordinated with 5 Year Plan
5. This is a basis for both O & M and CIP budgets

17. BUDGET TIMELINE
October
Annual Services Review
Appoint Budget Advisory Committee
Obtain Board of Ed Guidelines
November
Begin Budget Advisory Meetings
1 time/month
December
New Budget Proposal Submittals
January
Prepare Rollover Budget
Review New Budget Proposals
February
Prepare 1st Draft of Proposed Budget for Board of Education review
Review income side of the budget
March
Modify Original Draft Budget and formulate Final Draft for Board of
Education submittal

18. BUDGET TIMELINE
April
Further modify budget proposal
Budget Advisory Committee recommends to the Superintendent New
Proposed Budget
Board of Education adopts Final Budget Proposal for referendum
(including separate propositions)
Send out Proposed Budget and explanation to voting public
May
Voting public considers Budget Proposition and approves or disapproves
June
If disapproved, Board of Education adopts a Contingency Budget or
modifies Original Budget and re-submits for voter approval
July
New school year budget begins

19. FUTURE COST FACTORS
TO CONSIDER
• Projected annual rate of inflation
• Additive costs of contractual settlements
• Projected overtime costs
• Energy and utility cost increases
• Health insurance increases

20. FUTURE COST FACTORS
TO CONSIDER
• Cost additives for new building(s) or addition(s)
• Additional duties or functions transferred in or out
of the facilities area
• Identification of new equipment needs
• Special regulatory events, i.e., Building Condition
Surveys, Asbestos 3 Year Surveys

21. BOCES CoSERS and E-Rate
BOCES CoSers are shared services and equipment offering
state aid reimbursement, i.e., computers, health and
safety services, oil tank testing, telephone service, E-rate
consulting services, etc.
• Generates income for the following year and is
considered a bid item
E-rate is a governmental rebate on data and telephone
services determined by district relative to their “Free and
Reduced Lunch” rate. Example a F&R rate of 20%
generates 50% rebate on data systems (not individual
computers) phone and long distance costs for public,
private and parochial schools and public libraries.
• E-rate is generated monthly from individual phone bills
and redistributed by district F & R formula.

22. IF A BUDGET IS DEFEATED
TWO OPTIONS:
• The original budget can be modified by the Board of
Education and one re-vote can take place for passage
and/or
• Board can adopt a contingency budget
aLast year’s budget plus inflation (regionalized)
aNo new equipment other than safety & health
aIncludes new debt repayment approved by voters
aDoes not include high rate increases for energy, etc.