Utah deaf and blind schools impose furloughs to recover losses

SALT LAKE CITY — Last year's miscommunications are now taking a toll on the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind, which is trying to recoup funds late in the school year by furloughing three days between now and the end of May.

The furlough days will shut down all USDB campuses in order to cover a portion of a $600,000 shortfall that accrued during the 2009-2010 school year. USDB employees who serve in district schools will also take time off. The Utah State Office of Education will make up the rest of the deficit.

Some parents aren't happy about the furloughs, which can eliminate needed transportation or interpretation services to help deaf or blind students keep up with their classmates.

"It's not an enviable position," USDB Superintendent Steve Noyce said. "There's no way to put a good spin on it."

Noyce said USDB shares the responsibility for the funding shortfall with a handful of districts in the state as well as the State Office of Education.

"There's enough culpability to go around on that," he said.

A State Board of Education rule created in December 2009 requires the large districts in the state — those with 3 percent or more of the state's public education enrollment — to pay for a portion of the services their students receive from USDB. Those services may include mobility specialists and interpreters among others. The services smaller districts receive are funded through money allocated directly to USDB from the Legislature.

The shortfall occurred because the rule wasn't created until mid-year. While the rule had been discussed for months, by the time it was implemented district budgets had already been set and when USDB sent out invoices for services, some districts hadn't set aside money to cover their bill.

"Because it was adopted in the middle of the year, there were some districts that said 'we hadn't planned on this,'" said Martell Menlove, deputy state superintendent.

USDB initially found itself with a $700,000 gap, but more districts have come through on their payments, bringing the debt down to about $600,000.

To cope with the shortfall, the school has imposed a hiring freeze and has cut spending to "zero," in addition to shutting down for three days.