Contra Costa community college teachers are fighting a plan to use salary cuts to save $4 million.

Faculty members in the county's Community College District have been working without a contract since July 1, when their three-year pact expired. Administrators cut other college employee' salaries 7 percent this year, the same amount now proposed for teachers.

Instructors say they should not be held accountable for administrators' admitted financial mismanagement. And state lobbyists worry that the district's fiscal problems will reflect poorly on community colleges across the state when it comes time to set next year's budget.

District officials say they will need to eliminate classes unless they slash salaries soon.

"Part of our concern all along is that this district has made some serious mistakes in the way it manages its finances," said Sue Shattuck, president of the United Faculty union that represents about 1,300 Contra Costa Community College District teachers.

"And then they're turning to the faculty and saying, 'We need you to bail us out.'"

Teachers and administrators are negotiating with the help of a mediator, but district leaders say the salary cuts may be unavoidable. This year's district budget includes the cuts.

Administrators want the cuts to be retroactive to July 1, meaning teachers' paychecks initially would be docked more than the 7 percent to make up for the previous months. If the cuts don't start until January, for example, instructors will see 14 percent reductions for six months.

"If we don't negotiate through them, we will just impose (the cuts)," said district board member Sheila Grilli. "If there is no more money to be found, the result will be that we will lay off teachers and cut classes."

Shattuck argues that the money can be found. About 8 percent of the district budget is designated as reserves, while the state requires only 5 percent be set aside, a difference of nearly $4 million, Shattuck noted.

The district, already on a state "watch list" because of its shaky finances, could be in major trouble next year if it spends its reserves now, countered Thomas Smith, vice chancellor for finance. He anticipates a $2.9 million budget deficit in 2005-06 even with the salary cut.

The money problems were caused mostly by poor fiscal decisions over the past few years, Smith said. State education officials have said the district risks a state takeover if it doesn't stabilize its finances by late 2005.

"We're basically on a deadline to get this figured out," he said. "They're not going to wait until the district screws itself into the ground."

California community college leaders have proposed a 10 percent increase in funding for the state's 109 two-year schools in 2005-06. But some lobbyists worry that financial problems like the one in Contra Costa County could hamper the request.

Why should college districts that mismanage their funds receive additional funds? asks Jonathan Lightman, executive director of the Faculty Association of California Community Colleges.

"This really sends an incredibly ridiculous message to the Legislature and the governor," Lightman said. "This creates some extreme difficulties in our ability to raise funding."

Shattuck said she still believes Contra Costa faculty members can come to an agreement that will stabilize the district, but teachers may strike if the district forces pay cuts.

"Certainly some people have begun to talk about that idea," she said. "We want to think about that very carefully."