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Joel Klein is asking for flexibility and more money from the state at a joint session of the legislature today. Watch the testimony live online by clicking here.

Fleshing out the doomsday picture Mayor Bloomberg has laid out already about what would happen to schools if Governor Paterson’s proposed state budget is passed, Schools Chancellor Joel Klein told a joint session of the state legislature today that Paterson’s plan would force layoffs of 15,000 school-based staff, including teachers. He estimated the total state budget cut at $1.4 billion next year, a gigantic figure he said would translate into an 18% cut for every school next year.

He said that the schools could be forced to lay off staff as soon as this school year, because of a possible $84 million mid-year budget cut. “It would be right now saying to our schools, you’ve got to terminate people right away,” Klein said.

Klein is asking the legislature for help in cushioning against a scenario as bleak as that. He wants more flexibility in how the city schools are allowed to spend funds, especially Contracts for Excellence funds. He said he is also “praying” for help from the federal government.

“We don’t want to lose personnel,” he said later. “Particularly, we don’t want to lose young talented people that we’ve recruited in recent years.” If teacher layoffs happen, the least experienced teachers would be the first to lose their jobs, according to provisions in the teacher contract.

Klein said that cutting the Department of Education’s administrative budget is no longer possible. Right now, he said administrative costs make up just over 3% of the school system’s total costs. “That is about as small of an administrative budget as you’re going to see,” he said. “It means we have no choice but to cut back on core school operations to fill this budget hole.”

Klein is testifying at a joint budget hearing in Albany. You can watch the hearing live on the Internet here.