Yuma Elementary School District

Yuma Elementary’s fiscal year 2004 classroom dollar percentage of 56 was 2.6 percent less than the state average of 58.6 percent. The District spent 10.5 percent of its current dollars on administration, which was higher than the state average of 9.5 percent. Its per-pupil costs were 11 percent higher than the comparison districts’ average, primarily due to the high costs of the computer services that the District receives through an intergovernmental agreement (IGA). During fiscal year 2004, the District spent over $819,000 on computer-related services, or about $83 per pupil. The District’s food service program was self-supporting because of low salary and benefit costs. Yuma Elementary’s student transportation cost per mile was 43 percent higher than the comparable districts’ due to the high costs of its transportation IGA. These higher costs related to salaries, benefits, and transportation supplies, low bus capacity utilization, and high bus driver turnover. Further, the District paid a disproportionate share of the costs of the transportation program provided through the IGA. Low salary, water, and repair and maintenance costs helped to keep the District’s plant costs low. However, the District has high telephone costs because it is paying for two telecommunications services—one that is no longer in use and its current, upgraded service. The District spent its Proposition 301 monies for purposes authorized by statute, with employees receiving an average of $4,900 each, but its spending plan did not state how the District would allocate its base pay and menu options monies.