A request for more funding for education has lawmakers on the powerful legislative finance committee saying now is not the time to be asking for budget increases and maybe school districts should start dipping into their rainy day funds. The secretary of education Susanna Murphy told the L-F-C today that a 7.7 percent increase in next years budget would be needed to offset the loss of nonrecurring federal stimulus dollars and increases in growth and educational retirement plans. After hearing the request, lawmakers began to press Murphy on why many school districts are asking for more funding and threatening layoffs and furloughs when they have millions of dollars in reserve accounts. Economists with the L-F-C report that school districts across the state have more than 100 million dollars in reserve cash balances. Today a spokesperson for Rio Rancho public schools reported to Eyewitness News 4 that their left over cash balance from last year was about 7.5 million dollars. A-P-S estimates their cash balance is about 14 million dollars but the head of Finance for the APS school district Don Moya told lawmakers that compared to their budget, the cash they have on hand wouldn't be enough to cover a two week payroll period. "14 million dollars is less than three percent of our entire operating budget." Moya told the LFC.
