Tax cap the topic of conversation at W.H. board meeting

As November begins to draw to a close the West Hempstead school district community is gearing up for budget talks. The first topic of discussion this year is the state’s recently imposed property tax cap — a complex subject that even the district’s esteemed deputy superintendent, Richard Cunningham, admitted he does not fully comprehend.

“The devil is in the details,” he told Board of Education trustees at their Nov. 15 meeting, “and we’re still trying to figure the details out.” The tax cap, which limits municipalities and school districts to increases of 2 percent or lower, depending on the Consumer Price Index, was signed into law in June and takes effect for the 2012-13 school year. It is not complete, however, and there are still details that need to be worked out, according to Cunningham, so said he wouldn’t compute the district’s anticipated tax levy increase limit until January.

“It’s really not a 2 percent tax cap at all, for a number of reasons,” Cunningham said. “I caution everyone to be wary of the 2 percent number because for every particular school district it could be more than 2 percent, it could be less … and it’s going to vary through the year. And also, that number doesn’t necessarily apply to each individual homeowner’s or business’s taxes — those tax bills will continue to swing.”

While the district’s tax levy increase would be limited to 2 percent, Cunningham explained that it could be exceeded, but would need 60 percent voter approval in order to override the cap. Proposing a budget that exceeds the cap is risky, though, and if it fails twice, the district will be forced to present a budget with no increase at all.

"One of the unintended consequences of this whole thing appears to be that the rich will continue to get richer and the poor will continue to get poorer,” Cunningham said. “It’s quite vague at this point.” He added that further discussion of the property tax cap and the budget will take place at the Community Conversation meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 29, in the West Hempstead Middle School Cafeteria at 7:30 p.m.