Darien to Receive More Money than Anticipated

As the Board of Education battles through a gloomy budget season, a bright spot: Excess Cost Reimbursement funds from the state may be higher than anticipated.

Last November's news that the district would receive only 70 percent of anticipated excess cost revenue left the Darien Public Schools . State officials now say reimbursement for the 2009-10 fiscal year may be as high as 80 percent, which, combined with stimulus money, will help close the gap to a narrower $300,000.

"We're holding steady. Unfortunately we're not closing that gap with the state," said member Heather Shea.

Director of Finance Richard Huot points to a decrease in excess cost grant requests from neighboring towns as reason for Darien's boost. The district's reimbursement rate is proportional to other Connecticut towns.

"It won't do much, but every little bit helps," said Director of Finance Richard Huot. "It's certainly a bright spot."

For the most part, "excess costs" refer to the costs of providing special education and related services to children with needs in "excess" of the district's per-pupil budget. Where the board can be certain that the demand and subsequent cost of special education continues to climb, they say the rate of growth is a lesser known; and predicting just how much—or little—grant money the state will allocate proves the ultimate a guessing game.

While hopeful, Huot said he still "questions" new promises of an 80 percent reimbursement.

As the board looks to budget for next year, they err on the side of fiscal restraint. The proposed 2010-11 budget reflects a prudent 70 percent reimbursement rate of over $3.3 million in anticipated excess costs.

"We're having a hard time this year, so budgeting for a smaller number makes me more comfortable," said Chairperson Kimberly Westcott.

Westcott said she hopes takeaways from a recent special education program review by Education Consultant Thomas G. Badway of the Connecticut Department of Education will help to reduce future excess costs.

News from the state should come within the next two weeks, Huot said.