By Andrew Coen
By pitching to the public a budget with the third-lowest tax increase in Nassau County, Lawrence school officials said they were surprised the school budget was one of just five in the county to fail on Tuesday, June 3.
The budget was a good one, but it was defeated, so we have to go back to the drawing board and keep the public in mind while being fiscally responsible, said Samuel Donato, Lawrence's assistant superintendent for business.
The budget, which called for the fifth-lowest budget-to-budget increase in Nassau County, 4.9 percent, was defeated by 1,228 votes 3,068 voters rejected the budget, while 1,770 were in favor of it. A majority of voters at four of the six polling places voted no, with majorities voting yes only at the Number Two School (260 votes to 140) and Atlantic Beach (345 to 146).
According to Donato, the board did not adopt an alternative budget, so there is very little time to pass a new one. The vote on the new budget will take place hours before contingency would kick in at the July 1 deadline.
That's a major concern to hold the vote as late as possible to give as much time to get the word out about the new budget, said Donato. I would hope that the board adopts a new budget for re-vote by next week.
According to Lawrence School Board President Frank Parise, there will be no formal hearing on the new budget. We're reviewing the budget again and will possibly revise it, said Parise.
Donato will recommend to the board that the budget be reduced by about $300,000, which would make the gross budget hike 4.4 percent and the tax increase 3.6 percent, second-lowest in the county.
If the district operates on a contingency budget, it would fund only essential items and would be limited to a maximum 1.92 percent increase over the current budget. The district thus could lose summer programs and equipment as well as capital reserve items and one-time reserve items, Donato said.
Donato was also very upset about the failure of the proposed $20.7 million bond to rehabilitate the schools, which was defeated, 2,897 votes to 1,565. I feel bad about that, because the rain has caused lots of leaks in the middle school and leaks do not just go away, said Donato. The proposition should be put up again, but not at the same time as the school budget.
If it had been approved, the nuts and bolts bond proposition would have helped pay for an upgrade in the schools' infrastructure, including roofs, boilers, fire escapes, masonry and plumbing. The bond would have had no impact on the tax rate for 2003-04, since the cost would have been spread out over 10 or more years and would have been partially reimbursed with New York State aid.
Incoming Superintendent Dr. John Fitzsimons was upset about the budget and bond not passing, and hopes voters will approve the budget on the second go-around. One thing I try to remind voters of is that when the board adopts a budget as fiscally responsible as this one, if they think education is expensive, try ignorance. I would hope the residents of the district would feel a responsibility to support the children, said Fitzsimons.
Fitzsimons will take over as the school system's new superintendent on July 1, the day after the second budget vote. Let's keep our fingers crossed, he said. I hope when I arrive on July 1, I will have more than an austerity budget [to work with].
The Hewlett-Woodmere School District budget and propositions passed easily. The proposed $69 million budget was approved, 1,807 votes to 1,223. The first proposition, which authorizes the district to spend up to $350,000 from the Capital Reserve Fund to replace and update technology, passed, 2,096 to 911. The other proposition, which authorizes the district to claim state funding known as Rescue Aid, passed, 2,220 to 755. Had the voters not approved the measure before July 1, the money would have been unavailable to the district.
