School board begins repayment for district overpay

The district is working with the trustees individually to pay back the debt, said Associate Superintendent of Business Services Ron Little.

Bills range from $1,600 for Trustee Liza Normandy to about $12,700 for Trustee Raymond Latham. Trustee Philip Weise owes $11,500. Board President Shirlee Hoch had an $11,500 bill. Trustee Emanuele Damonte owes an estimated $10,000. Two previous trustees also have a bill. Rom Braschi, who was last on the board in 2006, owes about $11,000 and Louis Dell'Angela, who left the board in 2002, owes $2,100.

All trustees seem to accept the mistake and intend to repay the money.

"I intend to pay back the money. It's not anyone's fault in particular. The buck stops here," said Damonte.

Thus far, Hoch and Normandy have repaid their debt.

"There was an error made on the calculation on my stipend and as soon as they gave me corrected number I was able to pay it back immediately," said Hoch.

Hoch, who is married to Braschi, said he also will be repaying the district.

A subcommittee was put together to revisit the policy to ensure a similar problem does not happen again.

"We're in the process of looking into this," said Weise. "There are still some questions about accounting. However, we try to hire the best staff and go to great lengths to make sure the district complies with all the rules and regulations of the education code."

Current law sets the base pay for districts with under 10,000 students at $240 per month. A district with less than 25,000 but more than 10,000 has a base pay of $400 per month. The law allows for a 5 percent annual increase.

The pay decreases approved in October began retroactively at the beginning of the school year. Stipends over the rest of the year will be prorated with the intention of it averaging by the end of the year.

As of October, trustees could also receive $778.56 per month for health benefits. If a trustee serves three consecutive terms, he or she is eligible to receive health benefits after leaving the board with the same level of contribution from the district.

Trustees can also request to be reimbursed for up to $3,000 annually for expenses related to conference, workshops, participation in school or civic events, postage, e-mail or phone expenses, office equipment, and books, subscriptions or membership fees, according to the board policy.

Heather Murtagh can be reached by e-mail: heather@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 105.