The 2020 Covid-19 Recession and Detroit

[Honky Tonk]

ROFL

I think the inference was that it was good for GM's health, [[a company headquartered here) ... and even more importantly, a good sign that our economy will quickly recover.

Though my post was meant as a sarc funny remark, there's truth to it. The people who have the most to gain from GM's profits, are the people @ the top of GM's food chain, and the Chinese auto workers, who are back to work making money, and are going to be able to pay bills. Auto workers in the US are still layed off, and the food chain from that point down the line, is still suffering.

[Bigdd]

Story on Channel 7 last night,... the massive losses to the state's budget will affect schools, big-time.

Education committee met and it looks like the cuts to schools will be the largest in history. Roughly twice what they experienced in the great recession. Perhaps loosing $2,000 per student on average.

https://www.wxyz.com/news/coronaviru...st-of-covid-19

That could represent a 20 - 25% cut in funding for most of the states schools,.. though for us in Detroit, it would be a much smaller cut. [[The average school receives like $8,500 per student per year,.. but Detroit has one of the 2-3 most heavily funded school systems in the nation, receiving some $14,700 per student last I looked [[while also having the single worst test scores in the nation). So as a percentage,.. the cut would be smaller. However, the unions takes most of that money,.. and if they continue to do so,.. the cuts in the classroom could be much more noticeable than anywhere else.

[Zacha341]

I am not seeing how the unions [[DFT for example) take MOST of the per-pupil funding? Yes DPSCD teachers, for example pay union dues [[voluntarily now since as DPSCD can not longer pull funds from paychecks at the front end). But I don't see a largess of other means for the unions to syphon big funding.

However, the unions takes most of that money... and if they continue to do so,.. the cuts in the classroom could be much more noticeable than anywhere else.

[Bigdd]

I am not seeing how the unions [[DFT for example) take MOST of the per-pupil funding? Yes DPSCD teachers, for example pay union dues [[voluntarily now since as DPSCD can not longer pull funds from paychecks at the front end). But I don't see a largess of other means for the unions to syphon big funding.

Salary counts for 44.25% of the budget
Employee insurance 5%
Soc Sec and Worker's Comp 18.83%

Those items = $531 million out of a $736 million budget, or 72% of the budget.

The actual amount for the buildings and maintenance is only 17.5% roughly.

[[Check out Operating expenditures for '18 - '19 in this link)
https://www.detroitk12.org/transparencyreporting

What I was getting at though, is that these numbers are all locked down in union contracts, and there are state laws regarding pension funding.

They may not be able to be adjusted downwards,.. [[I.E. they may not be legally allowed to cut teacher salary by 25% and cut funding to the pension system by 50% for the next 2-3 years to keep the schools running). And if not,.. that would mean that the 20-25% cuts may all need to come out of the funds for the buildings themselves, classroom supplies, utilities, busing, etc. And you can't cut utilities much [[you still need heat , lights and water to flush the toilets).

Cutting the current 28% down to 3% - 8% obviously doesn't work. The school board will likely have no choice but to close 1/2 or more of the schools.