Facts About the Brookfield Board of Education Budget

There has been much discussion about the Brookfield Board of Education's Budget during the past few weeks. Here are the FACTS about this proposal and budgets from recent years:

From 2004-05 to 2007-08, the BOE Budget increased by an average of 4.56% per year:  

 Year                Increase %           Budget $
2004-05           3.87%              29,280,567
2005-06            7.54%              31,488,337
2006-07            3.07%              32,455,837
 2007-08            3.76%              33,677,537

From 2008-09 to the proposed 2011-12 budget, increases have averaged 1.79%:

   Year          Increase %            Budget $
2008-09          1.24%              34,095,559
2009-10           -.26%              34,007,190
 2010-11           4.15%              35,419,378
 2011-12           2.06%              36,150,000

In the past five years, 2006-07 to the current budget year 2010-11, the BOE budget has increased by $3,931,041 or 12.48% and average increase of 2.5%.

While enrollment has dropped by 280 since 2004-05, at the same time the BOE has reduced its total staff by 34.72 FTE, including a reduction of 15.28 FTE teachers.

Brookfield's teacher and administrator salaries are competitive with similar districts state-wide based on demographics and student performance.

All Connecticut certified teachers and administrators, including Brookfield's, pay 7.25% of their annual salaries into a state run pension plan via payroll deduction. There are NO line items in the local BOE budget that provide any funding to this pension plan.

All Connecticut certified teachers and administrators are not permitted by state law to contribute to Social Security. As a result, they receive benefits only if they have paid into Social Security via employment outside of their teaching career.

Consumer-based health care plans have been implemented for 138 district employees reducing the district's 2011-12 premiums by $350,000. Overall, district employees will pay an average of 29.4% of the total cost for their health benefits in 2011-12.