School systems are seeing yet another decrease in funding from the state.

Gov. Sonny Perdue informed superintendents Tuesday that the state would cut another 3 percent from the Quality Basic Education funding it sends to the districts. In addition, all teachers will be furloughed for three days by Dec. 31, 2009.

“It saddens me that our economic situation is so dire that further reductions to education funding must be made, but I appreciate that the Governor and the legislature have done everything they can to cut education less than other areas of the budget,” said state Superintendent Kathy Cox in a prepared statement shortly after the announcement. “However, I realize it will still be difficult for our teachers, administrators and staff to absorb these reductions, especially as local revenue continues to decline, as well.”

The cuts will mean a loss of about $2 million for the Carroll County Schools.

Both local school systems have been hit hard already, and both managed to decrease their annual budgets for this new fiscal year that began July 1 rather than raise the millage rates. But the budget cuts meant layoffs, pay cuts and lost benefits for employees at both systems.

“Now, we’ve got to scratch our heads and figure out the best way for this to happen with minimum impact on our students,” said Carroll County Board of Education member Mike Huckeba. “It’s going to be a nightmare.”

The system had cut $9.6 million from last year’s budget to create this fiscal year’s budget.

The timing of the announcement is just slightly earlier than last fiscal year. Many systems have already set their millage rates – the Carrollton city school system has not – and budgeted on the income the state announced after the state budget was approved. The city school system had scheduled a special board meeting on July 28 to set its millage rate.

The required furloughs will create another problem for the systems. The teachers have already signed contracts for 190 work days as required by the state.

“The state BOE will have to waive their current rule of 190 teacher work days which they will do asap according to Kathy Cox,” Carroll County Schools Superintendent John Zauner told board members by e-mail.

But it is unclear how the systems will be able to implement the furloughs.

Budgeting is always frustrating, and wave after wave of funding reductions aren’t making it any easier for the systems. This latest reduction will bring the state back to the funding level it was in 2005, when the state had about 1 million fewer people.

“It’s like it’s neverending,” Huckeba said. “It may come down to one day everybody will have to home school their kids.”

Many of Georgia’s 100,000 state employees have already had to take furlough days, but school systems had been spared until Tuesday. Perdue said he’s hopeful that teachers would take the furloughs during planning periods and other times when students are not in class.

But school groups point out that the furloughs will likely affect students, as the furloughs would also extend to other school employees, from administrators to bus drivers and food service employees.

“In some way it would seem to have to impact an instructional day,” said Angela Palm, the policy director for the Georgia School Boards Association.

She said furloughs for teachers hadn’t been called for in more than 25 years, and other educational groups could not pinpoint the last time they were needed.

(The Associated Press contributed to this story.)