District tackles tough budget

Administrative leaders and Board of Education trustees took a red pen to early budget plans at a district-wide meeting Feb. 2 in the hope of finding a way to reconcile cuts of more than $3 million in state school aid for the coming year.

The Sewanhaka Central High School District is planning for the worst after the governor's recently released budget revealed that the district could be facing a $3.3 million cut in education aid. The reductions must be approved by the state Legislature, a process that is due to be finished on April 1 but that Sewanhaka Superintendent Warren Meierdiercks believes will take longer — and with good reason. New York's track record for releasing on-time budgets is less than poor.

Last year's school budget, which came in at $150.6 million, was seen as an extremely difficult spending plan to accept. It forced the board to make some cuts that parents throughout the district found offensive, including the elimination of late bus service, which affected students who took part in extracurriculars and those at private schools, and the elimination of driver's education programs, summer school and adult education at all five district schools.

The 2010-11 budget, which totals $157.8 million, an increase of just over $7 million, has shifted even more of the burden of education funding to local taxpayers. The increase of 4.8 percent is the smallest in more than a decade. Meanwhile, the district's impact on the local school tax levy stands to be more than double what it was last year, at 7.3 percent. Last year's budget increased the tax levy by just 3.4 percent.

"The reason for that 7.3 percent increase in the tax levy is that this budget is predicated on the revenue items and the governor's projection for state aid for the school district," Meierdiercks said. He reminded parents that if state aid stayed the same this year as it was last year, the budget increase would be the same, but taxpayers would be paying a smaller portion.

Meierdiercks also pulled no punches in telling parents that the passage of the school's budget was vital. "If the budget's defeated in two votes, in May and in June, then we're in a very, very difficult position," he said. "We are going to be limited to a zero percent increase in expenditures."

Meierdiercks reminded parents that a failure to pass the budget — whatever the final numbers are — would mean that the school board would be forced to cut $7.2 million from the budget as it stands now. Those kinds of cuts, he said, would start to impact students directly through the elimination of staff and an increase in class sizes, which are currently in the mid- to high 20s.

Two of the items that were removed from last year's budget — late bus service and driver's ed — were considered for addition to this year's spending plan at a combined cost of around $150,000. The driver's education program would cost $144,000 — or about $500 per student — an increase from $275, which it cost parents in 2008, the last time it was in the budget. Charging $500 per student would make the program "budget neutral," meaning the district would bring in as much in revenue as it would spend on the program. Driver's education for the 2010-11 school year would be held only on Saturdays.

The reintroduction of late bus service is a response to the intense criticism the district suffered from parents after those buses were eliminated starting last summer, particularly those who had students in private schools in the area.

In addition, Sewanhaka is negotiating on seven expiring contracts, and hopes to save money on contract extensions.

"The Board of Education has given us very clear marching orders to be as frugal and fair as we can be during these difficult financial times," Meierdiercks said.

Sewanhaka is cutting its capital projects budget to $1 million, a 50 percent reduction. Among building-improvement projects still on schedule in the district are an upgraded public address system and gymnasium bleachers at Elmont Memorial High School, a renovated science room at Carey and new lockers at Sewanhaka High School.

Last Tuesday’s meeting was just the beginning of the budget negotiations, a process Meierdiercks said would take two months.

The next finance meeting is set for March 2, with the districtwide final budget hearing scheduled for May 4. The vote on the budget is May 18.

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