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St. Martin Parish board weighs staff cuts, salary-conversion of sales-tax supplements

St. Martin Parish School Board ยท July 3, 2025
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Summary

Board members reviewed committee recommendations to reduce costs by consolidating some central-office positions while preserving classroom staffing; administrators proposed converting $2,400 of prior sales-tax supplements into base salary so employees remain "whole," and discussed risks if collections fall.

The St. Martin Parish School Board on May 20 considered a package of cost-saving recommendations aimed at closing projected shortfalls while preserving classroom staffing.

Board members presented a special-committee report and said salaries and benefits make up the largest share of the district budget. "Salaries and benefits are over 85% of our budget," a board member said during the meeting, arguing that meaningful savings would need to come from personnel costs rather than discrete line items.

Superintendent (name not specified) and finance staff told the board they examined multiple avenues, including consolidating central-office roles and abolishing vacant positions. "We could probably bring some jobs together, abolish some positions, and whether it's through retirement or abolishing positions we can come close to the budget that we need," one board member said.

Finance staff recommended taking $2,400 of prior sales-tax supplements and incorporating that amount into employees' base salary while reducing the supplemental payment by the same dollar amount so employees would receive the same total compensation this year. The administration presented the proposal as a way to strengthen retirement contributions and provide a stable base for employees, while keeping a supplemental pool available if collections decline. "It's a benefit to the employees to have it in their salary instead of as an extra supplement," a finance official said.

Board members raised procedural and fiscal cautions: once placed in base salary the increase is difficult to remove in future years if revenue falls, and making supplements part of base pay can increase the district's long-term obligations. The superintendent said payroll offices would manage implementation and that the board could reduce or suspend supplements if revenue dropped.

Several trustees pushed to protect the student-teacher ratio and maintenance staffing. "I disagree with cutting our student teacher ratio because that's our front line," one board member said, urging central-office consolidation instead. Administrators said they would present job descriptions, salary numbers and supervision counts to allow the board to consider targeted changes.

The board directed staff to return with more detailed lists of supervisor job descriptions, proposed consolidations and the budget impact of moving supplements into base pay so trustees could consider specific actions at a future meeting.