ISBE FY 2014 Budget Information

Additional state factors

• Due to the fiscal crisis, districts and other vendors have received late payments from the state since 2010. As of March 4, 2013 ISBE’s FY13 payment backlog stood at $634.3 million, representing nearly 12 percent of the State’s total backlog. At times during the past few years, ISBE’s portion of the backlog has topped $1 billion.
  
  

National Comparisons

• Illinois ranks 50th in terms of the state proportion of K-12 funding. The Illinois State budget provides for just 28 percent of all funds spent on K-12 public education, while local funds make up 61 percent. For comparison, the national average is 47 percent from the state budget and 44 percent from local sources. (US Department of Education – Common Core of Data).
  
  

Amid the cuts totaling nearly a billion dollars, the public school student demographics are changing to include more students in need, requiring more resources

• The percent of low-income students went from 42.9 percent in 2009 to 49 percent in 2012.
• Our students classified as Limited English Proficient has also grown from 8 percent of all students statewide in 2009 to 9.4 percent in 2012.
• Homeless students are also on the rise, with about 29,000 in November 2010 compared to nearly 36,000 in November 2012. In that same time frame, the homeless students in Chicago Public Schools alone increased by more than 7,000 students, with 18,000 homeless CPS students reported in November 2012.
  
  

Next Steps in the budget cycle: What happens next?

• ISBE held several open budget hearings throughout the state in the fall to hear the priorities of local providers and citizens.
• The Board discussed the budget at the December meeting and agreed to move toward an increase to General State Aid and Early Childhood funding.
• The Board approved their budget request in January and submitted to the Governor’s Office of Management of Budget. The Board seeks to restore $875 million in order to provide full education funding as required under Illinois law.
• The Governor revised the budgets proposed by all State agencies, and submitted a consolidated proposed budget to the General Assembly March 6.That budget proposes to cut an additional $300 million from the K-12 State education budget.
• The House and the Senate will each hold open public budget hearings in the spring (more information will be posted at http://www.ilga.gov/), as they consider amendments to the Governor’s budget. Each house will then approve its own revised version of the FY14 budget.
• Further hearings will be held in Springfield as the two houses reconcile these versions into a final bill that will be sent to the Governor’s desk in the summer 2013.
• The Governor has significant veto authority over the bill, and can “strike out” both language and appropriation items. Any budget items not vetoed are immediately enacted into law; modified items are again considered by the General Assembly during a special “veto session” in the fall of 2013.
• ISBE works hard to incorporate input from stakeholders across the state during the budget process, but ultimate authority for education funding in Illinois rests with the General Assembly and Governor. ISBE only has direct discretion in allocating line items that make up about 7 percent of the budget.
• Parents and administrators are encouraged to contact their local state senators and representatives directly and to participate in General Assembly hearings, as the budget is developed.

Fact Sheets

• Fact Sheet - Illinois Education Funding & Recent Cuts (3/13)
• Fact Sheet - General State Aid (3/13)
• Fact Sheet - Changing Illinois Public School Demographics and Education Funding (3/13)
• Fact Sheet - Illinois Ranks Last in State Contribution to P-12 funding; EFAB “Foundation Level” Not Approved Since FY02 (3/13)

Press Releases

• Education Funding Advisory Board: Double education investment by $4.7 billion; current resources a `failure of the state’s moral and fiduciary responsibilities’ (Jan 23, 2013)
• ISBE FY14 Budget Recommendation (Jan 24, 2013)
• ISBE shares impact of GSA proration (Feb 11, 2013)

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