February 19, 1999

 

Cirone Re-elected Chair of FCMAT

 

Bill Cirone, Santa Barbara County Superintendent of Schools, was re-elected chairman of the California Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team (FCMAT) at the group's January board meeting.

Established by AB1200 in 1991, the California FCMAT was created to ensure that the state's educational entities prepare adequately to meet their financial obligations.

AB1200 created a statewide plan for county offices of education and school districts to work together on the local level to improve fiscal procedures, standards, and accountability. The law was rooted in the concerns that arose following the bankruptcy of Richmond School District, and the fiscal difficulties of a few other districts that were preparing to seek emergency loans from the state.

The FCMAT board that Cirone chairs is composed of one county superintendent and one district superintendent from each of the state's 11 service regions. A deputy superintendent from the California Department of Education also is on the board. The board meets quarterly to set policies and to monitor progress.

Through the passage of AB1200, the legislature proclaimed that even in times of tight revenues the vast majority of California's 1,000-plus school districts have been able to maintain balanced budgets, and that local educational agencies should not expect to be bailed out by the state when they exhibit a pattern of unacceptable fiscal management.

While only a small handful of the state's school districts have reached an extreme stage of fiscal crisis, a troubling trend had shown an increasing number of school districts dipping into general fund reserves and using deficit spending. The passage of AB1200 was intended to send a message to local educational agencies to put and keep their finances in order.

AB1200 expanded the role of county offices of education in monitoring school districts and mandated that they intervene, under certain circumstances, to ensure that districts can meet their financial obligations.

In crisis situations, county offices can call upon the FCMAT to help determine appropriate steps toward fiscal recovery. AB1200 provisions also apply to the state in its monitoring role over county offices of education.

No publicly-funded K-12 school operation has been left unaffected by this innovative effort to ensure fiscal solvency throughout the state's school system," Cirone explained. "School district fiscal solvency is fundamental to providing children with a quality education and in maintaining public trust and confidence," he said.

"I'm honored to chair the FCMAT board that is designed to maintain fiscal integrity through sound business practices and appropriate monitoring in all school districts in California.

"I'm also pleased that the primary activity of FCMAT has moved from intervention to prevention through management studies, audits, and training."

Cirone said that FCMAT has contracted to help scores of local education agencies, including school districts and county offices of education. It is noteworthy that in all the districts and county offices where FCMAT has conducted studies, not one has sought an emergency loan from the state.

Some of these local educational agencies were experiencing severe fiscal crises that took years to develop. Some made direct requests to FCMAT for assistance with management or organizational issues, Cirone explained.

"Everyone involved &emdash; the state legislature, the governor, California Department of Education and school districts &emdash; gives FCMAT very high grades in improving fiscal accountability, significantly reducing the incidences of districts facing insolvency and establishing a clearly-defined and workable intervention model for districts that do get into financial difficulty," Cirone said.

"I welcome this challenge and the honor of chairing the FCMAT board at this time."