68.0°,
Mostly Cloudy Sewanhaka passes 2011-12 budget
The Sewanhaka Central High School budget passed this evening, with 4,628 votes in support of the budget, and 3,028 votes against it. This year's turnout — 7,656 voters — was slightly lower than last year's, when nearly 10,000 residents came to the polls to vote for the 2010-11 budget.
"We’re ecstatic," said Warren Meiediercks, Sewanhaka's superintendent. "We’re ecstatic that the taxpayers approved this budget. It's been a tough season."
Last year, Sewanhaka received 5,994 votes in support of its 2010-11 budget, and 4,117 votes against it.
Sewanhaka's 2011-12 budget is $162.26 million, a $5.95 million increase over the district's current spending plan. Meierdiercks said that 73 percent, or $4.35 million, of the increase is due to the rising costs of three mandated components of the budget: the state’s teacher retirement system, its employee retirement system and health insurance. The Sewanhaka district encompasses five high schools: the New Hyde Park Memorial High School, H. Frank Carey High School, the Elmont Memorial High School, Floral Park Memorial High School and Sewanhaka High School.
Budgets passed in 119 Long Island districts on Tuesday night; 95 percent of Long Island's district's passed their budgets. Rejected budgets include the Locust Valley, Oyster Bay, Seaford, Westbury Fishers Island districts.
