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Anyone live or work in Delaware that can offer insight to this story from WDEL's Sean Greene?

An impasse between Delaware's high school sports governing body and their referees is threatening to affect the 2023-24 school year.

The Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association Board of Directors voted Wednesday to override the recommendation of its Officials Committee and not give referees a raise for the upcoming season.

The vote came after a contentious debate involving the Delaware Association of Athletic Directors (DAAD) and the Delaware Interscholastic Officials Association (DIOC), which represents 17 of the officials groups in Delaware.

Currently, DIAA regulations require member schools to pay varsity officials in each sport $84 per game, with a $5-15 bump for various postseason rounds, with no travel stipend.

An agreement between the DAAD and DIOC led to a more tiered system, where football would get $100, most other sports getting $95, while track and field and swimming would get $80.

In addition, officials would get a travel fee of $10-20 if they live more than 14 miles from a game site.

The argument made by the Delmarva Football Officials Association, who looked to get an even bigger raise last August and briefly went on strike during the preseason, was that football officials work the longest games, so they should get more money.

Walt Connor, a veteran basketball official who works with the DIOC, said while that is a substantial raise, it's still cheaper than what his colleagues across the Delaware River get paid.

"The fees that we are proposing are less than what every high school from Bordentown, New Jersey to Cape May and to Salem are going to pay next year."

DIAA Board member Mark Robinson, the former athletic director at St. Georges, said that budgets will take a hit, since the largest year-to-year increase in budget he ever saw was 4%.

"Schools are not going to be able to pay that fee because those increases won't come. Who ends up suffering are the kids because those allocations have to come from somewhere, and the other things that aren't officiated-based are going to come from equipment. Who is going to get hurt are the kids."

Department of Education Associate Secretary of Student Support Mike Rodriguez, who is acting as the de facto Executive Director after Donna Polk was removed last week, said he spoke at the Official Committee meeting Monday about his concerns over the raise.

"This is a pretty hefty increase that DIOC is requesting. I said 'what is to prevent us from being in this exact position one year from now?", and that question was not answered."

That 15-person committee passed the recommendation 7-1, but there are no members of that committee in a Head of School role like Shawn Larrimore, Superintendent of the Laurel School District, and DIAA Board member.

"I don't think the DIAA Board needs to be involved with regular game fees going forward, I think this needs to be worked out with the school chiefs, who are ultimately the purse strings holders for the districts."

Larrimore further said by taking the DIAA Board, and also athletic directors, out of the equation, officials can hear directly from the Delaware Association of School Administrators.

"We'll be able to tell you point blank 'Hey, this is going to cost us extra dollars over so many years,' we're not just throwing a dart at a target blindly, we'll know."

Part of the contention is over a proposed five-year plan that would have bumped pay in most sports from $84 to $87 to $90 in two-year intervals going through 2026-27.

DIAA Board lawyer Laura Makransky told the board they should not accept anything but a year-to-year scheme, so they chose to just take the $84 scale, setting up the strike with the downstate officials, who wanted more money.

Connor said after the DIAA Board entertained discussion just with the DFOA, the agreement was null and void.

"That five-year plan, as far as the DIOC is concerned, and as far as our membership organizations are concerned, is dead. It's a non-starter, and all of our groups have told us that."

That deal would have held referee fees at $84 this year, hence what the DIAA Board agreed to Wednesday, but now Connor said DIOC is giving the board two options.

"Take the regular season game fees out of the regulation, and let us negotiate with each individual district, with each individual conference, with each individual school, or you can build in some sort of kicker. What used to be in there was if the state employees got a raise of a certain percentage, the game fees were adjusted to that percentage. We can adjust a cap, we can adjust a percentage, whatever we want to do."

Board member Robinson said letting each school make their own decision could have consequences for schools and districts with less money to spend on athletics.

"There are going to be schools that won't get officials, and there will be schools that get more officials. It will rip at the core of equity across our state."

Larrimore said he's concerned that the new DIOC proposal is just one year, and after going beyond the peak of the previous five-year deal, and saying neighboring states make more, that this could be a yearly debate.

"I don't want to see a stoppage, and I don't want to devalue our officials because we have a shortage, and I think they do a thankless job, but I don't want to be shook down every seven months."

Before the vote, Larrimore said by representing school leaders who have not had a chance to digest what $33 plus travel costs could do their budgets, he couldn't accept the raise in good faith.

"I don't think that we can support an increase at this moment without knowing the total local impact, so if we have to make a vote today, I don't know how we can do that."

Ultimately his board colleagues agreed, with a 14-0, with one abstention, vote to keep the fees in place.

Board President Doug Thompson said he wants to see officials groups show they can recruit younger and higher quality officials before offering them more money.

"I'm through with you when it comes to money. I'm thrifty, I'm not just going to spend money on something like this, I expect quality."

He also said the state needs to get better at paying officials, as the current system doesn't pay back to officials until after the sports season is over, as opposed to weekly, monthly, or even quicker.

"They should be paid in a timely matter. In New Jersey they have a system called Zebra, they get paid within a matter of 3-5 business days. Just sitting down waiting to collect money 5-6 months later is absurd in this day and age."

Connor argued that the DIAA is the only education group looking to set rates for constructors, comparing them to outsourced bus companies that many districts have the option to use or not based upon cost and quality.

Long-time basketball and volleyball official Layne Drexel told the board during public comment that by holding the line on referee fees, they're sending the wrong message.

"By not at least attempting to come to a temporary compromise today, it seems apparent that this board has sent a message that you're willing to risk the amicable start of the Fall sports programs in Delaware."

The current contract between the DIAA and officials runs until August 15, but because the fees are set in a Delaware State Regulation, if there is to eventually be a change, it would have to go into a two-month process of public comment, so most likely an agreement or any change would be required by mid-June, unless there is gubernatorial intervention like what happened when required mask use was terminated.

Time remains, but as the DIAA begins its search for a new Executive Director, has its Coordinator of Athletic Events Angel Prinos complete her second week, and a disconnect between the DIAA Board and its officials, the second hand is moving quickly.