Bellmore elementary districts prepare for budget vote

Both the Bellmore and North Bellmore school districts will hold their annual budget votes next week. Here’s what you need to know about the districts’ spending plans:

In Bellmore

The Bellmore Board of Education recently approved a $31.5 million budget.

The proposed budget reflects a 2.27 percent increase in expenditures over the 2010-11 school year. The increase is the lowest in 16 years for Bellmore.

The largest issue came on the revenue side of the budget, Superintendent Dr. Joseph Famularo noted. “State aid amounts to only 11 percent of our revenue as compared to 20 percent in the past, and an average on Long Island of 15 percent,” he said. “Our advocacy efforts in this area continue.”

State aid is projected to be $3,775,553, an 8 percent decrease from the previous year. Instructional services make up nearly 79 percent of expenditures on the budget. With the loss in state aid, a tax levy of 3.89 percent is required to maintain the budget.

In North Bellmore

The North Bellmore Board of Education approved its 2011-12 budget at its April 14 meeting.

The proposed $48 million budget reflects a 2.18 percent increase in expenditures over the current year. The increase is the lowest in the past 10 years, Superintendent Arnold Goldstein said.

“We’ve really tightened up the budget as much as possible,” Goldstein said. He noted that the largest part of expenditures was due to an increase in retirement benefits for employees, which is beyond the district’s control. The total cost of employee benefits has risen nearly $568,000 since the 2010-11 budget. Even with the dramatic increase in retirement expenses, Goldstein noted that employees agreed to compensation concessions and that administration has taken the same compensation for the third straight year.

No programs will be cut, and North Bellmore maintains one of the lowest cost per student in Nassau County, Goldstein said.

State aid is projected at a little more than $10.4 million, a 4 percent decrease from this year. Goldstein noted that state aid makes up 21 percent of the budget as compared to 38 percent 10 years ago.