The St. Mary’s County Board of Education has unanimously approved eliminating the three previously approved employee furlough days and to pay employees for them in one lump sum. The plan advanced by School Superintendent Dr. Michael Martirano at Wednesday’s school board meeting will have to be approved by the county commissioners.
The school system is able to pay for the $1.4 million that would have been saved with the furlough days because of a larger than anticipated fund balance and savings from the employee health plan. The end of fiscal year audit leaves the school system with a $5.7 million fund balance, of which $2.2 million is a refund from the insurance carrier. That refund could go higher ($3.7 million is the current estimate) when the final numbers are available later this month.
The remainder of the health care premium savings will go to funding the so-called OPEB (Other Post-Employment Benefits) to cover future retiree costs.
In addition to receiving a lump sum check for the three furlough days on December 16, employees will also have returned to them 20 percent of the insurance savings, which will lead to three pay periods in November and December in which they will not have to pay health care premiums and two pay periods for retirees. School Board member Brooke Matthews said, “This is the best Christmas present I have ever gotten.”
Martirano made the announcement with a meeting room packed with administrators, teachers and support personnel and he was given a standing ovation at the suggestion of School Board Chairman Dr. Sal Raspa.
An often emotional Martirano said, “This has been a very painful process to furlough our employees,” he said. Choked up and barely able to speak, he added, “I just want to thank every employee for the work they do every day for our school children.”
“I was aware of the stressful and painful decision we had to make. It was very difficult for the board,” said board member Cathy Allen of the original decision. Mary Washington concurred, saying, “It was an agonizing decision for us.”
The effect of the decision would leave the board with a $2.1 million fund balance going into the next budget cycle which by all accounts could be as challenging or perhaps even more so that what was just experienced. “This is not going to be the end of our budget struggles,” Allen said.
Martirano has had several meetings in recent weeks with the county administrator and county finance officer. The request will go to the county commissioners at their October 25 meeting. Since the decision on the furlough days requires a transfer of funds from one budget category to another, the commissioners could turn it down. Returning the health care savings to the employees does not require a categorical transfer so that can be done without commissioner approval.
The commissioners provided the school board with $759,000 more than the required Maintenance of Effort in the budget that went into effect on July 1.
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