BOE is looking for your input on the 11-12 budget.

[WantaghConcernedCitizens]

The Board of Education and Central Administration invite all Wantagh School District residents to participate in a casual discussion regarding the 2011-2012 budget.

Community input is encouraged!

WHEN: Thursday, March 24, 2011
WHERE: High School – Room 150-152
TIME: 6:30 - 9:30 P.M.

www.wantaghschools.org/wantagh/lib/wantagh/TOWN_HALL_MEETING32411.pdf

[lilly]

This is good news. I am curious about the format of the meeting as I'm not looking forward to a repeat of the pep rally/town hall meeting that was held prior to the 2nd vote of failed budget year.

[Wantagh Parent]

bumping

[Wantagh Parent]

Bumping again.

Reminder: Important Town Hall meeting tonight on 2011/12 budget.

WHS
Room 150-152
6:30-9:30

[lilly]

There were leave behinds with lists of what is retained/cut which are not posted on the district website.

Overall, lots of questions & dialog e.g., one person questioned where is district's business plan (and was left unsatisfied with answer), why do taxes always seem to come in (much) higher than the estimated %ages, lots of questions on priorities of cuts.

The latest working draft has:

- reinstatement of both 4th & 5th sections
- loss of 1/2 admin at Beech (Mr. Cuifo becomes gym teacher, no supv resp but the other 1/2 supv remains, Ms. Carroll?)
- loss in custodial staff & building projects (but the MS is getting new bleachers & gym floor re-varnishing)
- loss of swim team
- combined 7th & 8th sports
- loss of a drama performance

There were some comments made about priorities, that we seem to be about sports vs. arts or academics e.g., lack of Intel, # math and science EC's. I found the cut of one drama performance rather stunning in light of hits to the arts budget, BAC votes that say otherwise and it was the play the HS'er take to the elem schools (meaning that there was zero listening by the admins/BOE to better integrate arts in the Wantagh culture at all school levels). And in the beginning, there were lots of comments on the cuts to sports, particularly the swim team.

There was also good representation from some older citizens that they cannot retire, have to keep working to pay the increasing taxes. One person noted that the average teacher salary exceeds the average Wantagh citizen. It is mportant to note that complaints about increasing taxes were not limited to seniors, others with school age kids questioning the same.

I was kind of floored by Beech parents who despite decreasing enrollment wanted reinstatement of 1/2 admin on top of the 4th & 5th grade sections. Man, they are gonna be surprised when their kids get to MS. Maybe they should have left 5th without those reinstated sections to prepare the kids for that transition.

And punchline of the evening.... Acc to the super, we were on track for full day Kind, the economy tripped us up (parents unhappy about that which was also raised).

Overall, I was surprised by the lack of #'s presentation in what turned out to be a verbal budget presentation by Lydia Begley. More soft soundbytes vs. # data. Once again, we as a district, managed to talk about a budget without fully mentioning the key budget pressure #'s. The BOE did state repeatedly that they will not discuss contract negotiations in public which did come up. They did not mention an obvious one, like the unfunded mandated increases to benefits.

It was not a happy meeting bc the subject was not happy. They are estimating the average HH tax increase is $343, which many didn't believe.

Current draft #'s are slightly down vs. last BAC draft - +1.X% spending and +4.X (high 4's) tax increase.

[Chris_Wendt]

Thank you very much for posting this recap.

In the end, (as stated in the School Budgeting - Part 2 thread), it will be the Board of Education who must take ownership of the budget, and the resulting taxes, tie it all up and put a bow on it, and set it before the real "community" to have their say at the polling places in May.

A $343 per household tax increase will be unacceptable or simply unfordable to many people, including to Sue and me. To other people, such an increase will be affordable and acceptable, and still others will consider it a bargain, especially if they pay any attention at all to Seaford and other LI school districts.

Is $343 realistic as an estimate? It is too early to say, perhaps by only a week or so. Why is that?

1. The State Budget has not been passed, so, State Aid estimates are at best questionable; my sources say a budget deal is all but done, and ahead of the deadline; I expect the district's estimate of State Aid could come in spot-on.

2. The teacher contract is unresolved, making the whole budget and tax increase exercise a pig-in-a-poke. The Board of Education is 100% in control of that outcome, its cost and cost reductions, but/and, to a far lesser extent, its timing. If the Board brings in a sweetheart teacher contract which blows their tax increase estimate out of the water, then they will have no one to blame but themselves. If they hold-out and hold on tight, they can bring in good contract at some point in the future, and still maintain the credibility of their budget and tax increase. Some point in the future could be a year or two or longer in the making.

3. The Base Proportions Adjustments have not been factored-in; when they become known the District should publish a revised household (Class One) tax increase estimate. I presume the District knows they can call the County Assessors Office and get this information, once the State releases it.

4. Nobody really gives much of a thought about the budget increase, I mean as compared to the tax increase. The magic key to bringing in a low tax increase, after the spending has been pared down and after the State Aid has been finalized, and with solid determination not to give away the store to the teachers union, the Board can redeem themselves and the contorted, convoluted budget process, by either pulling or pushing on the lever marked: "Appropriated Fund Balance". I also presume the Board knows they own that responsibility, also.

Bottom line is that the Board of Education has to deliver this budget and tax package to ""THE COMMUNITY"". There is an ugly mood out here in the community about...TAXES.

(NIFA has declared the County Budget to be out-of-balance, and it is very likely that they will demand the County increase their taxes over the objection of the Count Executive. Not a good backdrop for voting on a school budget/tax increase in May).

A $343 tax package would not be getting my vote--even if voting "NO" would result in a higher tax increase for Sue and me. We will not be going quietly.

Thanks again for the inform, Lilly.

Chris Wendt

[ducky]

It was good but because only a small minority of people knew about it, less representative of the community.

[lilly]

Well, the county froze wages and NIFA is urging Mangano to drop the lawsuits.

And, regarding the NYS budget, it looks like the $1.5bn education cut may only be $1.25bn. I doubt, however, if Wantagh will get much if anything of that $250m so I'd go with your prediction that Wantagh's current revenue estimate is likely.

I don't get the protracted WUT negotiations. It should be noted again that the supv/chairpersons contract was settled relatively quickly with concessions like freezes and increased health ins contributions. They also gave back during the contingency year, adding teaching periods, while the WUT was silent with zero givebacks. As far as I'm concerned, the BOE should wait out those WUT negotiations forever, if need be until they get the #'s we can afford to pay (which are salary cuts or freezes).

With the looming 2% tax cap and NYS finances not looking too peachy, it's the long term impact of that contract that is critical to the district and taxpayers. There is no way I can abide by teacher raises putting us at or above the potential 2% tax cap, which is a likely scenario. We've been paying increasing taxes at cuts to the kids and this has been and unacceptable bc we're tapped out. If we know the tax cap is a real possibility, no way should we chance this.

That is no comment on teachers, nor should it invite teacher bashing. I've been hearing emotional arguments for teacher raises at BOE meetings. Yes, we love our teachers. However, this is not an emotional argument at all, it's hard, cold financial facts.

So to vote for a budget with critical unknowns is not good. It's kind of like jumping out of an airplane not knowing if you have a working parachute if that is not too melodramatic.

The BOE/admins have already promised that a contingency budget will have an ever so slight tax increase vs. the proposed. We have to do something about those 'same old tricks' BOE dynamics. This election will have two open trustee positions, presumably with incumbents running again. Yes, there have been improvements, but obviously not enough yet if statements like this are made.

[lilly]

NYS/Newsday still haven't posted revised aid #'s but Skelos had comments on it.
_______________________

www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/spin-cycle-1.812042/skelos-li-will-get-usual-share-of-school-aid-1.2790455

Skelos: LI will get usual share of school aid
10:38 AM By Michael Amon

Long Island schools would get roughly their traditional share of state aid under the budget bills to be passed Wednesday by the State Legislature, Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos said.

Overall, the budget cuts education spending by about $1.2 billion, leaving about $19.6 billion to be distributed across the state. Cuomo proposed even deeper cuts, but the legislature restored about $230 million of it to kindergarten through 12th-grade programs.

Long Island’s share of school aid spending would be about $2.5 billion, or 12.9 percent -- in line with what it has received in the past. New York City would receive about 38.6 percent. The rest would go to schools north of the city.

“We’re going to have a reasonable distribution,” Skelos (R-Rockville Centre) said.

Education was one of the last components of the state’s $132.5-billion budget to come together after Skelos, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, a Democrat, and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (D-Manhattan) agreed on a budget framework Sunday.

The State Senate and Assembly are poised to vote on the bill Wednesday afternoon.
______________________

[ducky]

This should have been more heavily advertised, it wasn't even in The Citizen. The BOE really needs to hear from the "silent majority" and be responsive to them. The WUT needs to hear more and maybe even listen.