Population shifts mean fewer district budget dollars 

Declining enrollment is something small and rural districts have been struggling with for years, as fewer students mean less revenue from average daily attendance. But now even large urban districts are seeing a drop in enrollment: Los Angeles Unified, for example, is projected to lose 85,000 students by 2012, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office. Elementary schools statewide are expected to see 56,000 fewer students each year.

Because school districts don’t have the liberty to trim expenses in neat student-by-student increments, many experience severe financial difficulties when revenues shrink faster than they can cut costs, and the current protection built into the funding formula isn’t adequate for many districts.

To help districts dealing with declining enrollment issues, CSBA has joined School Services of California and a number of school districts, county offices and statewide organizations to form the California Declining Enrollment Coalition. The sitting CSBA President will act as co-chair of the coalition to explore legislative remedies that CSBA would co-sponsor if consistent with its policy platform.