New Haven Independent

Posted by: Jeff Klaus | January 30, 2007 10:21 AM

Before any district (not just the board of ed in New Haven)receives public money, that district should agree to produce a clear and understandable picture of it's finances to the public. Public corporations are required to do this in their annual reports.

Utilizing a common "chart of accounts" which conforms to generally accepted accounting principals, and presented in a format understandable to the average person, would be a great start to having a public conversation about how money is being spent in our public schools.

Given the fact that BOE spends more than half of the city's entire budget, the district should start off the conversation by fully and clearly disclosing how money is spent today.

Just a few basic questions to ask: How effective is the New Haven BOE in spending the money that it receives today? How does the district's fiscal performance compare with it's peer districts? What kind of fixed contracts have been entered into? What kind of return are we the public getting for our investment?