Calif. budget crisis hits public schools

SACRAMENTO, March 3 (UPI) -- The California budget crisis could soon hit the state's public schools as local boards try to put together spending plans for next year.

"These could be the most devastating cuts our schools have ever seen," Orange County Superintendent William Habermehl told the Orange County Register. "I don't know how some of our school districts will be able to survive this and provide the same quality of education."

Seventy percent of California school spending comes from the state. While districts do not have to approve budgets until mid-June, they must get any layoff notices to teachers in mid-April.

Some districts in Orange County have already lost state aid because of falling enrollments and are dealing with expenses that have not fallen so sharply. Others are struggling with rising enrollments.

Capistrano Unified, a district where the number of students is increasing, is considering dropping its class-size reduction program, which could eliminate the jobs of 231 teachers.