State Education Department

The budget enacted by the Legislature) made the following changes to the Executive Budget (analysis as of May 22, 2002):

·        Added $1.2 million as a Maintenance Undistributed appropriation in the new Office of Higher Education and the Professions.  This was the amount that was expected to be saved by discontinuing academic reviews of college and university programs. 

·        Added $26 million in a new Special Revenue-Fund Cultural Education Account in the Cultural Education program.  This was the amount that was appropriated in the Council on the Arts budget for the proposed New York Institute for Cultural Education (NYICE).    The Council on the Arts budget contains no funding for the NYICE.  The new cultural education account is supported by a $15 surcharge on the filing fees charged by County Clerks (see Part B of S6258-B/A9760-B).

·        Reduced the other Special Revenue-Other appropriations in the Cultural Education program by $5,000,500  distributed as follows:

ü      Education Archives Account (-$570,000)

ü      Education Library Account (-$2,320,000)

ü      Education Museum Account (-$2,110,500)

The impact of these cuts is unclear but we believe the new $26 million cultural education account provides more than adequate funding for the current operations of the State Archives, State Library, and State Museum.

·        Requires the Commissioner to complete a review by June 1, 2003 of all applications, plans and reports required of school districts or boards of cooperative educational services.  The review will focus on streamlining all programmatic reporting requirements and to determine the need for continued annual submission of such documents (see Part H of S6258-B/A9760-B).

The Executive Budget recommends (analysis as of January 24, 2002):

·        An FTE level of 2,793, which represents a decrease of -475 positions.  Most of these (-446) are associated with the move of the Cultural Education Program to a public benefit corporation.

·        Moving the Cultural Education program to a new public benefit corporation, the New York Institute for Cultural Education, which will be located in the Council on the Arts.  The move is proposed for July 1, 2002.  The new corporation will be funded by increasing the filing fee charged by county clerks.   No changes in staffing are proposed.  However, the new corporation will have a Merit Board to oversee the “civil service” system for the corporation.  While its employees would remain State employees the titles and salary grades would not be set by the NYS Department of Civil Service Division of Classification and Compensation.

·        Consolidating the Office of the Professions and the Office of Higher Education into a new Office of Higher Education and the Professions.  The consolidation would result in the loss of -11 positions.  General Fund support for academic reviews of college and university programs would be discontinued.  Accreditation would be provided by national or regional accreditation services or SED’s self-supporting Teacher Education Accreditation activities.  This is projected to save $1.2 million.  The Legislature has rejected a similar proposal in the past. 

·        The following changes in the Department’s State Operations budget:  a $10.6 million (-18.9 percent) decrease in the General Fund support; a $34.3 million (21.4 percent) increase in Special Revenue Funds–Federal; a $13.1 million (16 percent) increase in Special Revenue Funds–Other; a $374,400 (36.5 percent) increase in Fiduciary Funds; and a $5 million (32.7 percent) increase in Internal Services Funds.

·        An increase of $2 million in a Special Revenue – Other Account Maintenance Undistributed appropriation in the Office of Management Services Program.  It is unclear what this increased appropriation will fund.

·        An increase of $1 million in an Internal Service Fund Maintenance Undistributed appropriation in the Office of Management Services Program.  It is unclear what this increased appropriation will fund.

·        An increase in funding from the Special Revenue – Federal DOE account of $10.4 million (25.3 percent) in the Elementary and Secondary Education program.  This includes increases of $4.9 million (20.9 percent) in personal services, $3.2 million (50 percent) in nonpersonal services, and $2.3 million (30.7 percent) in fringe benefits.  It is unclear what this increased federal appropriation will fund since the number of positions funded by federal money in this program remains at 299 positions.

·        Cutting the School for the Blind’s Special Revenue – Other nonpersonal services by $106,100 (15.3 percent).  It is unclear how this cut will impact school operations.

·        An increase in VESID’s Special Revenue – Federal DOE funding by $20.5 million (19.8 percent).  Of this, personal services is increased $4.5 million (8.7 percent) and nonpersonal services is increased $14.6 million (59.6 percent).  It is unclear what this increased federal appropriation will fund since the number of positions funded by federal money in this program remains at 1,062 positions.