Albuquerque Public Schools
Operational budget cuts
"Shrewdly doing much more with much less."
M&O’s many ongoing challenges are going to intensify as Operational budgets get squeezed due to New Mexico’s slow economic recovery and APS’ stagnant student population. As with the past fiscal year, more stress and pressure on the limited available Capital SB-9 funding in 2017-18 is a foregone certainty. It means shrewdly doing much more with much less. With Operational (earmarked for salaries) budget cuts, some personnel vacancies are currently not being filled. As a result, M&O is increasing the use of subcontractors to perform routine as well as PM work that would ordinarily be carried out in-house. Consequently, M&O is challenged to stretch SB-9 funds for additional contractor responsibilities. Prioritizing projects has never been easy or simple, as all needed work is just that, needed. Yet M&O will have to orchestrate an even more precise and targeted prioritization of projects and needed maintenance in the near future.