By Shaylyn Austin
Staff Writer
Board Policy 1230, passed on March 21, will require all school-connected organizations’ budgets and financial statements to be approved by the district through the Manhattan Beach Athletic Foundation. Increasing regulations on booster clubs will ultimately constrict these organizations’ fundraising abilities.
According to the disctrict, these revisions reflect concerns proposed in California Assembly Bill 165, which Governor Jerry Brown vetoed last fall. AB165 would have enforced already existent California legislation that requires all aspects of public school be free of charge to students.
The American Civil Liberties Union brought this issue to the state government and is re-filing a lawsuit against the state for requiring students to pay money for school organizations. In light of this dispute, the board has decided to take regulatory measures to ensure that all school-connected organizations are operating in ways that are completely compliant with policy and law.
Though the impact of these regulations is not yet known, the policy grants vague authority to the district and leaves too much room for interpretation. Boosters are concerned that in the future, the district will use this lack of clarity as a means to expand its rules and regulations.
For example, the revisions state that the district has the ability to decline the authorization of donations for specific expenses. Boosters will no longer have the freedom to submit money to their accounts without the prior approval of the district due to BP 1230.
Boosters cannot afford to be told how they are allowed to raise money. The over-regulation of fundraising activities and donations of school-connected organizations will impede the financial success of these groups.
According to girls basketball Booster President Debbie Martucci, money raised by boosters is vital to program’s survival.
The revisions further state that school-connected organizations are responsible for additional expenses such as the salaries of teachers or coaches and transportation. These overhead costs are mutually agreed upon between the organization and the district, and if they are not paid, the district will not approve donations for any other expenses.
If they could not meet the pre-determined expenses, boosters would be expected to make unnecessary cuts. In this situation, the district over-steps its jurisdiction in determining what organizations are allowed to spend their money on.
Financial reliability and responsibility should be valued at Mira Costa. However, this should not lead to over-regulation, which could drain funds and ultimately lead to more cuts within programs on campus.
One benefit to the policy is the district’s right to audit the financial records of school-connected organizations, such as sports boosters, at any time. This revision would ensure the reliability of organizations and verify that they are following the Education Code. The district should focus on less intrusive supervision that still holds organizations accountable but do not disrupt their ability to raise funds.
Organizations should simply be required to provide annual budget reports to the district, which would include their intended expenses and fund-raising projects, in order to prove their compliance with the legislation.
Although greater management and oversight of finances would aid consistency with the law expressed in AB165, it would ultimately hamper school-connected organizations’ abilities to make purchases and hold fund-raising activities for their programs.
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