VSB passes its budget

The Vancouver School Board's lone trustee, Dianne Turner, has passed the budget for next year.

The budget includes a plan to move some existing teacher positions from the current operating budget into the classroom enhancement fund, provided by the province to restore the teachers' contracts to 2002 staffing levels. That plan reduced the budget deficit by about $7.1 million.

The ministry first told me this plan was not allowed, but then was unable to answer my questions because the election writ had dropped. Other districts, such as Richmond, are also facing significant deficits, but were unsure if they could transfer funding for teaching positions in the same way.

This story I wrote earlier this month explains the funding shuffle.

Turner was appointed by the province to run the Vancouver School Board after the elected trustees were fired for failing to pass a balanced budget.

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