$3.7 MILLION IN CUTS MADE PSD COUNSELORS, HOURS TARGETS OF MAJOR DECREASES.

Byline: Karen Maeshiro Staff Writer

PALMDALE - Palmdale School District trustees approved more than $3.7 million in cuts in next year's budget despite pleas from employees not to cut their work hours or leave jobs vacant.

The cuts include leaving vacant three counseling positions, meaning one counselor will cover more than two dozen schools, and reducing the workday for about 75 staffers from eight hours to 6 1/2 hours, with their paychecks reduced comparably.

``The district has to make some difficult decisions. The revenue stream is not meeting expenditures,'' trustee Sheldon Epstein said.

The board at Tuesday's meeting approved making the cuts to balance the $160 million 2004-05 budget.

The district last year cut $12.5 million from its 2003-04 budget and switched from a multitrack year-round calendar to a traditional schedule to save money.

Two counselors will retire at the end of the year, and there is one open counseling position budgeted for the proposed Desert Willow School. Leaving all three positions unfilled will result in savings of $310,000, a district staff report said.

``(The remaining) counselor was very passionate about keeping the positions, with the recent tragedies in the valley and the necessity of having an active listener to listen to what kids have to say,'' Epstein said.

Superintendent Jack Gyves said if additional funding becomes available, cuts can be restored.

``If the situation changes, if any new money comes in or if any negotiated settlement produces money, the board can always rescind cuts they have made,'' Gyves said.

The cuts also included scaling back work schedules for some employees to coincide with the 10 1/2-month traditional school calendar.

``The librarians and the techs, they felt it was extremely important to have continued services at the eight hours. They were giving their job description, and why it was necessary to do eight-hour days. It was rather difficult to accomplish everything they needed to do within a 6 1/2-hour scope,'' Epstein said.

The cuts also include reducing bus routes for middle school students. The district will make fewer middle school students eligible for bus rides to and from school by increasing the distance inside which no bus service will be provided from one mile to 1 1/2 miles from schools.

That would save the district $450,000.

The district also will use other sources of funding to pay for employee salaries. More than $919,000 would be saved by using federal Title I funds to pay for library and technical positions, the report said.

District administrators initially thought they would have to slash $4.1 million from the 2004-05 budget, but that amount was lowered because of additional funding coming in.

The $428,000 in extra funding included an insurance rebate, interest savings from restructuring debt, and management opting for a higher vision plan co-pay, a district staff report said.

Prior to Tuesday's meeting, Palmdale already had cut $690,000 of the $3.7 million by adjusting work schedules of instructional aides and child-nutrition workers, and eliminating the equivalent of 2 1/2 maintenance positions.

The district's budget advisory committee had come up with a list of recommended reductions that included cutting five assistant principal positions for a savings of $555,703 and eliminating the elementary school music program to save $319,000, but district administrators did not recommend those for board approval.

Karen Maeshiro, [phone]

karen.maeshiro(at)dailynews.com