RSS 2.0 FeedApril 21, 2011, Wantagh Seaford Citizen
Wantagh school board approves budget
Final budget seeks 1.46% increase over this year’s budget and a tax levy increase of 3.99%.
The Wantagh school board voted last week to place a $70,194,507 million budget on the May 17 ballot. This budget represents a 1.46% increase over this year’s budget and a tax levy increase of 3.99%.
Dr. Lydia Begley, superintendent of Wantagh Schools, told The Citizen “this is the lowest budget to budget increase in 11 years. We fine-tuned everything, looked in every nook and cranny. We are very proud of this budget,” she said.
The Wantagh Schools have been struggling over the past few months to present a budget that would keep education standards but would still be palatable to the public, she added.
“We made some significant cuts and used the state aid restoration of about $140,000 to help this budget,” explained Dr. Begley. “We wanted to give back to the community and so we are using $2 million from the general fund plus $565,000 from reserves.”
This budget preserves “academic programs and keeps [the current] class size at the elementary level,” said Dr. Begley.
The technology program will also move forward and the writers’ workshop, now offered in the first and second grades, will be expanded to grade three.
At the middle school, students will have the opportunity to take a new course in electronic key boarding; eighth grade students will receive new social studies textbooks.
Meanwhile at the high school, a new class in digital media publishing will be offered to students.
“We are also very proud that we have been able to keep all our sports teams intact,” said Dr. Begley. “We have separate [grades] seven-eight teams.”
In order to present this budget, Dr. Begley said “we had to trim maintenance and facilities.”
The budget, first revealed at the March 13 school board meeting, called for a tax levy increase of 5.1% and a budget increase of 1.99%. The district trimmed the budget a bit and in the April 7th edition of The Citizen, Dr. Begley said the budget increase could be around “1.92%” and the tax levy increase around “4.77%,” which has been reduced.
But on April 14 the district brought in the final numbers. Dr. Begley said the average home in Wantagh assessed at $411,600 would pay $311 more in taxes.
Wantagh Schools, like other Long Island school districts, faced cuts in state aid as well as rising labor costs. At the March 13 board meeting, resident Jude Netto said the district’s retirement contributions had been growing at an alarming rate and today accounts for a 26% increase since 2003 or approximately $3.5 million.
Dr. Begley also pointed to unfunded mandates as another drain on the district. Dr. Begley provided The Citizen with a list of some of these mandates that will cost the district approximately $1.8 million during the 2011-2012 school year.
These unfunded mandates include the Nassau County water and sewer tax for $60,000; an increase to health insurance contributions of $500,000; employee contribution for teachers/employee retirement of $900,000; academic intervention services for $320,000; GASB (for business actuarial costs required after the Roslyn School District scandal) $12,000; an accountant for district’s financial statement for $11,500; Annual Professional Performance Review with a cost yet unknown.
“This is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Dr. Begley, who explained that the district is working with other districts in consortiums to reduce costs. “The district is talking with Seaford and Massapequa about shared services for our mutual advantage,” she said.
