JEFFERSON COUNTY FINANCIAL
EMERGENCY
325 West Gaines Street
Turlington Building, Suite 1244
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0400
www.FLDOE.org
© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
FINANCIAL EMERGENCY
• Occurs when:
• a district cannot pay the obligations it does not contest; OR
• restricted, committed, or nonspendable funds fall below 2% of the projected revenues for
the fiscal year AND the Commissioner declares a financial emergency based on the
probability the district will not be able to meet its obligations
• In a monthly financial report dated May 31, 2016, Jefferson County projected a
negative financial condition ratio of (.083), triggering the requirement for the district
to provide a financial plan
• Jefferson County submitted two plans to avoid a financial emergency
• Despite claiming a positive projected financial condition, neither plan was based on
realistic assumptions nor did either propose actions that would reasonably allow the
district to pay its obligations – therefore, a financial emergency was declared and a
Financial Emergency Board (FEB) was appointed
To avoid a declaration of financial emergency,
the district must propose a financial plan that is
reasonably likely to avoid the ultimate financial
emergency: The Inability To Pay Its Obligations
The FEB is designed to help the district craft a
realistic plan of success – the Department of
Education and the Board oversee plan
implementation
www.FLDOE.org
© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
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FINANCIAL EMERGENCY
• The financial plans provided by Jefferson County were not realistic. Among other
problems and deficiencies, they:
• Did not include funds to pay for an external operator to help run the schools as
the district had proposed to the State Board of Education
• Proposed cuts to instructional staff without corresponding cuts to district
administrative staff
• Included hypothetical energy savings of almost $69,000 from a new HVAC system
(projected to cost $2,300,000) that had neither been purchased nor installed
• Included fuel efficiency savings on buses that have not been purchased
• Failed to reconcile previous audit findings
• Claimed savings with no explanation of their source
www.FLDOE.org
© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
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FINANCIAL EMERGENCY AND TURNAROUND PLANS
• Both schools in the district are in the
turnaround process required for low
performing schools. In addition to a
financial plan, the district must
propose educational turnaround plans
that are more likely than not to
improve the schools to a grade of C
within two years
• One role of the FEB is to assist the
district in finding the money to fund
an acceptable turnaround plan
The unique challenge is to balance
urgent educational needs with
realistic financial constraints
www.FLDOE.org
© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
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FINANCIAL EMERGENCY
• As a result of the lack of funds reported by the district and the absence of a
potentially viable financial plan, on August 10th the Commissioner found the
district to be in a state of financial emergency and took steps to appoint a FEB
as required by statute
• To prevent further financial deterioration, the Commissioner immediately took
the following actions and imposed the following limitations:
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District budget must be approved by the Commissioner
District is prohibited from issuing new debt including bonds, notes, etc.
District must permit inspection of records and assets
District must cooperate in inspection and reviews
Expenditures budgeted in capital projects funds must be postponed
The District must expend funds only per advertised 2016-17 budget
No new financial obligations may be incurred unless necessary for
student health, safety, or welfare
The Commissioner’s actions
• Spending and reconciliation plans are due to the
and limitations are stopgap
Department each month
measures pending the
Financial Emergency Board’s
recommendations
www.FLDOE.org
© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
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FINANCIAL EMERGENCY BOARD POWERS
• Determine what is needed to bring the district into compliance with
statutory requirements
• Review the records, assets, liabilities and financial plans of the Jefferson
County school district
• Review the district’s operations, management, efficiency, productivity, and
financing of functions and operations
• Consult with other governmental entities to recommend consolidation and
streamlining of services and elimination/curtailment of identified functions
• Submit reports and make recommendations to the Commissioner of
Education and the State Board
• Make rules for conducting FEB business
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© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
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DISTRICT RESPONSIBILITIES
• Cooperate fully with the Financial Emergency Board
• Timely provide access to documents and subject matter experts
• Develop a recovery plan, in consultation with the Financial Emergency
Board, that meets the district’s financial obligations, including turnaround
plans for low performing schools
• Implement the final financial recovery plan
Basic idea is that the district must participate in the process as directed by
the FEB and the Department to reach the best possible outcomes for the
students and the taxpayers
www.FLDOE.org
© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
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GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE
OPEN MEETINGS
• Florida has broad open meetings and public records laws that the FEB must
follow
• A meeting is any gathering of two or more FEB members to discuss some
matter which may foreseeably come before the board for action.
• Meetings must be open to the public
• Reasonable notice must be provided
• Applies to formal meetings and to informal encounters or discussions
• A “meeting” can include:
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telephone calls
written correspondence between committee members
e-mails
texts
communicating through a liaison
www.FLDOE.org
© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
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GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE
OPEN MEETINGS
The use of a written document by one member to inform other members of a subject which will
be discussed at a public meeting can be permissible BUT prior to the meeting there can be NO
interaction related to the document among the members
If you have a document that you want to distribute to other members, please send it to:
Link Jarrett
325 West Gaines Street, Room 1202
[email protected]
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0400
He will distribute the document
Members can seek information, advice and input from staff – they cannot communicate with
each other outside of the public meetings. Thus, staff cannot act as a communication conduit
from one member to another
Non-disruptive videotaping, tape recordings, or photography is allowed at public meetings
Since 2013, with limited exceptions, the public must be given the opportunity to be heard before
board or commission takes official action
www.FLDOE.org
© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
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PUBLIC RECORDS
It is the policy of the state that all state, county, and municipal public records shall be
open for personal inspection by any person.
“Record” means:
• All documents, papers, letters, maps, books, tapes, photographs, films, sound
recording, data processing software or other material, regardless of physical form or
means of transmission, made or received in connection with the transaction of official
business
• Includes any document prepared or received in connection with official business of the
agency to perpetuate, communicate or formalize knowledge
• Even records that do not reflect the official position of the FEB or that are inaccurate
are public records
• The Florida Supreme Court has interpreted public records to encompass all materials
made or received by an agency in connection with official business which are used to
perpetuate, communicate or formalize knowledge.
www.FLDOE.org
© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
10
PUBLIC RECORDS
• Your notes intended for your own personal use in remembering something are
not a public record, if the notes are not circulated and are not used to
formalize, perpetuate or communicate knowledge
• Drafts which are not circulated for review, comment, and revision are not
public records but there is no generalized “draft” exception
• Do not use personal phone text messages to conduct FEB business
BOTTOM LINE: The best policy is to
assume that everything written,
recorded or produced in connection with
FEB business is a public record
www.FLDOE.org
© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
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PROVIDING PUBLIC RECORDS
• The law requires that every person who has custody of a public
record permit the inspection and copying of a public record at a
reasonable time and under reasonable conditions.
• No showing of purpose or special interest is required to review
the record
• Cannot require the requestor to produce identification as a
condition of providing records
• A request need not be in writing
• There is no specific time limit for compliance with public records
requests
• The only delay permitted in producing records is the reasonable
time needed to retrieve and redact exempt or confidential
information
• An agency is not required to answer questions or give out
additional information under the public records law – the
document speaks for itself
• An agency is not required to create a record under the public
records law – only to produce an existing record
www.FLDOE.org
© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
The Department
will review any
requested records
before providing
them
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WHEN YOU RECEIVE OR CREATE
A PUBLIC RECORD OR A REQUEST FOR PUBLIC RECORDS…
Please send a copy to:
Link Jarrett
325 West Gaines Street, Room 1202
[email protected]
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0400
and he will maintain all the public records in a central
location and respond to requests as necessary
www.FLDOE.org
© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
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© 2014, Florida Department of Education. All Rights Reserved.
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