How Education is Financed
in Saskatchewan
Financing the public education system in Saskatchewan is a shared responsibility,
mainly between the provincial government and school boards:
- The government provides funding from general revenues on an equalizing
basis that is distributed through the operating grant formula; and,
- School boards have autonomy to deliver education services in their
school division within the parameters of The
Education Act, 1995, and
to raise the remaining education funding requirements from the property
tax base.
2007-08 Funding Manual
Download
full 2007-08
Funding Manual
Provincial K-12 Operating Grant
The operating grant formula is a distribution mechanism to allocate
a fixed amount of provincial funding, taking into account local need
(school boards’ expenditure requirements) and local fiscal capacity
(school boards’ capacity to collect education tax levies from the
property tax base).
Key to understanding the funding allocation system is the fact that
the formula is based on recognized expenditures and revenues, which
are not equal to the actual expenditures and revenues reported by school
divisions in their Audited Financial Statements after year-end.
The basic funding formula is: A-B=C
Where: |
A = the school division’s
recognized expenditures |
| B = the school division’s
recognized local revenues |
| C = the provincial operating
grant |
Since the total provincial operating grant is a fixed amount, the formula
(A – B = C) must balance. Any increase in recognized expenditures
must be offset either by an equal increase in recognized revenues, provincial
grant or a combination of recognized revenue and provincial grant. Similarly,
any adjustments that result in a grant increase for one or more than
one school division can only be achieved by reducing grants to other
school divisions by an equal amount.
Factors that impact School Division Grants
Each year, changes in student enrolments, programs and taxable assessment
can cause significant shifts in the allocation of grants. The
major factors that have impacted the 2007-08 school division grant
allocations are explained below
Changes in Enrolment
Total expenditure recognition within the grant is determined largely
by student enrolment counts. Decreases in school division enrolments
will result in a decrease in recognized expenditures; the reverse situation
occurs for those school divisions that are experiencing increases in
enrolments.
Enrolment declines occur every year and can have a significant impact
on the grant a school division receives and the overall grant distribution. Student
counts as of September 2006 are down by 3570 or 2.1% province-wide
from the previous year.
Changes in Total Taxable Assessment
The local revenue generating capacity of school divisions is determined
by taxable assessment. Increases in taxable assessment would
translate into a reduction in provincial grant; the reverse situation
occurs for those school divisions that experience decreases in taxable
assessment.
Changes occur in taxable assessment every year (although are more
profound in revaluation years) and can have a significant impact on
the grant a school division receives. Provincially, taxable assessments
are up $327M or 1% over the previous year.
Changes in Provincial Funding
Provincial budget decisions determine the value for the C side of
the equation. Increases in provincial funding increases grant
funding and decreases have the reverse effect. Provincial funding
for K-12 operating grants is up $23.8M in 2007-08.
Changes in Programs
For a number of grant factors, expenditure recognition is tied to
specific programs or services occurring in a school division (examples
include French Immersion programs and transportation routes). When changes
in these programs or services occur, they are reflected in the recognized
expenditures. Increased programming and services translates into
increased recognition and the reverse is true for decreases in programs
and services.
|
