Budget and Salary/Compensation Transparency Reporting

INTRODUCTION

Section 18 (2) of the Public Act 94 of 1979, The State School Aid Act, has been amended, which requires each school district and intermediate school district to post certain information on its website within 30 days after a board adopts its annual operating budget or any subsequent revision to that budget. The Annual Budget & Transparency Reporting is an opportunity to communicate to our community how we utilize the resources that are provided to us.

The following information is required to be posted on our website:

Below are the statutory requirements found in MCL 388.1618 Subsections 2, 3, and 11.

(2) A district or intermediate district shall adopt an annual budget in a manner that complies with the uniform budgeting and accounting act, 1968 PA 2, MCL 141.421 to 141.440a. Within 15 days after a board adopts its annual operating budget for the following school fiscal year, or after a board adopts a subsequent revision to that budget, the district shall make all of the following available through a link on its intermediate district's website homepage, in a form and manner prescribed by the department:

(a) The annual operating budget and subsequent budget revisions.

(b) Using data that have already been collected and submitted to the department, a summary of district expenditures for the most recent fiscal year for which they are available, expressed in the following 2 pie charts:

(i) A chart of personnel expenditures, broken into the following subcategories:

Salaries and wages.
Employee benefit costs, including, but not limited to, medical, dental, vision, life, disability, and long-term care benefits.
Retirement benefit costs.
All other personnel costs. 

(ii) A chart of all district expenditures, broken into the following subcategories:

Instruction.
Support services.
Business and administration.
Operations and maintenance.

(c) Links to all of the following:

(i) The current collective bargaining agreement for each bargaining unit.

(ii) Each health care benefits plan, including, but not limited to, medical, dental, vision, disability, long-term care, or any other type of benefits that would constitute health care services, offered to any bargaining unit or employee in the district.

(iii) The audit report of the audit conducted under subsection (4) for the most recent fiscal year for which it is available.

(iv) Bids required under section 5 of the public employee health benefits act, 2007 PA 106, MCL 124.75.

(v) The district's written policy governing procurement of supplies, materials and equipment.

(vi) The district's written policy establishing specific categories of reimbursable expenses, as described in section 1254(2) of the revised school code, MCL 380.1254.

(vii) Either the district's accounts payable check register for the most recent school fiscal year or a statement of the total amount of expenses incurred by board members or employees of the district that were reimbursed by the district for the most recent school fiscal year. 

(d) The total salary and a description and cost of each fringe benefit included in the compensation package for the superintendent of the district and for each employee of the district whose salary exceeds $100,000.00.

(e) The annual amount spend on dues paid to associates.

(f) The annual amount spend on lobbying or lobbying services. As used in this subdivision "lobbying" means that term as defined in section 5 of 1978 PA 472, MCL 4.415.

(g) Any deficit elimination plan or enhanced deficit elimination plan the district was required to submit under this article.

(h) Identification of all credit cards maintained by the district as district credit cards, the identity of all individuals authorized to use each of those credit cards, the credit limit on each credit card, and the dollar limit, if any, for each individual's authorized use of the credit card.

(i) Costs incurred for each instance of out-of-state travel by the school administrator of the district that is fully or partially paid for by the district and the details of each of those instances of out-of-town travel, including at least identification of each individual on the trip, destination, and purpose. 

(3) For the information required under subsection 2a, 2bi, and 2c, an intermediate district shall provide the same information in the same manner as required for a district under subsection (2).

(11) If a district or intermediate district does not comply with subsection (2), the department may withhold up to 10% of the state school aid otherwise payable to the district or intermediate district under this article, beginning with the next payment due to the district or intermediate district, until the district or intermediate district complies with subsection (2). If the district or intermediate district does not comply with subsection (2) by the end of the fiscal year, the district or intermediate district forfeits the amount withheld.