Office of the Budget

The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) Office of the Budget is responsible for MSDE's annual operating budget, including the Department's annual budget submission to the Department of Budget and Management. The Office also develops and recommends policies and procedures for the formulation, amendment, and execution of the MSDE budget.

MSDE's annual operating budget includes more than $350 million in operations for MSDE headquarters and more than $9 billion in State aid and other non-headquarters programs. Primary ownership of MSDE's budget resides with the director of the Office of the Budget and the budget team, which includes a budget coordinator and the interagency rate calculator. 

Some of the responsibilities of the Office of the Budget include, but are not limited to:

  • Preparing the annual agency budget submission

  • Calculating and distributing calculations related to aid to education funding (e.g., Blueprint State aid)

  • Administering informal kinship care (IKC) and out-of-county-living (OCL) State aid programs

  • Calculating and distributing annual daily per-pupil rates

  • Funding for educational organizations (e.g., State-aided institutions and the Maryland School for the Blind)

  • Preparing, negotiating, and implementing MSDE's Annual Indirect Cost Plan

  • Advising and assisting Divisions and Offices in preparing and executing the Department's budget

  • Performing fiscal analyses of MSDE operations and programs


​The Office of the Budget also includes five Core Services Team Planning and Budget Analysts who report directly to the Assistant State Superintendent of Financial Planning, Operations, and Strategy and who actively support MSDE Division and Office fiscal operations. Each Core Services Team planning and budget analyst is responsible for ensuring and maintaining the fiscal health of a corresponding Office and Division and its related programs. Each analyst reports directly to the MSDE Office of the Budget, in the Division of Financial Planning, Operations, and Strategy (FPOS). The CST planning and budget analysts are supported by FPOS fiscal coordinators who process budget alignments and transaction journal entries, conduct audit and other fiscal request research, manage program cost account numbers, and who liaise directly with the Accounting Branch in the FPOS Office of Fiscal Operations and Accountability. 

Learn more about the Core Services Team


Contact:

Neeta Gandhi
Senior Executive Director, Financial Operations
Office: (410) 767-7520
neeta.gandhi@maryland.gov