New budget information helps shrink gap; Cuts still expected
Residents urged to attend Jan. 30 budget forum in person or online
Jan. 24, 2012
| Superintendent to ask neighboring districts to participate in shared services study |
| Also at its Jan. 23 meeting, the board of education passed a resolution authorizing Superintendent Spring to send a letter to neighboring school districts, asking them to participate in a comprehensive study of alternative forms of organization. In other words, district officials are looking to explore a range of potential partnerships with area districts, including shared services to mergers. |
| “We’ve been cutting our budget, which is already very lean, for the last three years and it looks like we will be cutting again,” Spring said. “This is affecting the quality of education we can offer here at Mohonasen. Given this, it would be irresponsible of us to not explore all possible options for keeping down costs while maintaining programs and services for kids.” |
| This past summer, the Mohonasen Board of Education met with the Schalmont board to discuss the possibility of sharing services. Learn more about that meeting here. |
In a presentation to the board of education at its regular meeting on Jan. 23, Mohonasen Superintendent Dr. Kathleen Spring said that as more concrete budget information has become available, the district's budget gap has decreased from more than $3 million to approximately $1.4 million.
Budget cuts are still expected and after years of budget reductions, Spring said there are no easy decisions to be made.
“Those who have watched our budget process unfold in the past know that many of these numbers are moving targets this time of year,” Spring said. “However, the picture is becoming clearer and now our job is to identify how we will fill this gap in our budget.”
Download the PowerPoint slides from Jan. 23 board of education meeting.
The current working draft of the budget is $45,014,734, while the 2011-12 budget is $42,904,561.
Since December, officials have made some budget reductions in department/building budgets. At this time, these cuts do not include any staffing cuts, but rather things like materials, supplies and professional development. Other new budget factors, which helped to shrink the budget gap from what was originally projected, include debt service information that was not previously available, budget figures from BOCES, and minor expenses absorbed by the federal PEP grant.
District officials are still expecting to lose $843,000 in federal aid, due to the end of federal jobs bill funding. However, they are also expecting to see an increase of about $180,000 in state education aid, based on Governor Cuomo’s budget. Both of these figures are included in the current working draft of the budget.
Tax Levy “Cap”
Spring also told the board that based on current information, the district’s tax levy “cap” figure would allow for a 2.28 percent increase in the tax levy. If the board opted to propose a budget that is within the “cap”, it would result in $511,526 in additional revenue over the current year’s budget. This figure is included in the current working draft of the budget.
Of course, if the board opts for a higher tax levy increase, the budget gap would shrink and fewer budget cuts would be necessary. If the final proposed tax levy increase is lower, the budget gap would increase above the current $1.4 million.
Under the new tax levy cap law, every district will arrive on a different “cap” figure based on an eight-step formula. This figure is actually a threshold that determines what level of voter support a district needs for its budget. If the district proposes a budget that is within its threshold, or cap, the support of more than 50 percent of voters is needed (as has always been the case). If the district proposes a budget that exceeds the cap, the support of a supermajority, or 60 percent of voters, is needed.
Click here for more information on the tax levy “cap.”
Budget forums to include online option
More details on current budget projections, as well as potential budget cuts for next year, will be presented at a community budget forum on Monday, Jan. 30 in the Mohonasen High School Farnsworth Technology Center.
The forum will consist of a presentation and small-group discussions. Those who are planning to attend are asked to RSVP by e-mailing aleon@mohonasen.org or calling 356-8250.
Also, new this year, residents will be able to participate in the meeting in the comfort of their own home. Click here to learn more about the budget forum webinar option, which will be available for both the Jan. 30 and Feb. 29 budget forums.
Both forums will be from 6:30-8:30 p.m.
