Baldwin School District mistakenly mails out extra ballots

There was recently some confusion in regards to the Baldwin School District budget and trustee ballots that were mailed out for the June election.

A number of ballots — the amount of which are unknown — were mistakenly mailed to residents in neighboring communities, including Rockville Centre and Oceanside, according to Newsday.

In compliance with the governor’s executive order on school district elections, Baldwin School District representatives explained to the Herald, the district sent ballots to the list of names and addresses of registered and “qualified voters” provided by the Nassau County Board of Elections.

“We were very disappointed to learn after the ballots were mailed out that the list of ‘qualified voters’ the Board of Elections provided us did not meet those expectations,” district representatives said in a statement. “It has come to our attention that there were some gaps in this process, which led to the database provided by the County Elections officials including addresses that were not part of the Baldwin School District. As a result, we have put extra emphasis on our already rigorous and thorough process of reviewing absentee ballots to only accept and count ballots from qualified Baldwin school district residents.”

This was the first time the district has conducted an election in this fashion, representatives said, adding that all returned ballots would go through the following process:

— The address would be confirmed to reside within school district boundaries. If they are not, they will be logged and the exclusion will be checked by an on-site Board of Elections inspector.

— If the ballot is confirmed to be within the Baldwin School District, the voter will be logged into the elections software to confirm they are a valid, qualified voter. If they are, the vote will count. If not, they will be logged and the exclusion will be checked by a Board of Elections inspector.

“This all absentee-ballot election process is unprecedented and we are already taking steps to assure that the lessons learned in this process will be applied to all future school district elections,” said Robert Leonard, a spokesman for the school district. “Our highest priority is providing the residents of our community with the ability to securely and confidently express themselves through our election process.”

School election deadlines extended

Saying “No New Yorker should have to choose between their health and their right to vote,” N.Y. Gov. Andrew Cuomo extended the deadline for mail-in ballots in local school budget and school board elections, originally scheduled for Tuesday.

Hand-delivered ballots still must be received by 5 p.m. on June 9, according to a news release, but mail-in ballots may be received until June 16.

In the same executive order, the governor allowed absentee ballots in the state’s presidential primary to be counted if postmarked no later than June 23. This means voters may mail their ballots as late as the day of the election.

Budget information

The Baldwin Board of Education adopted a 2020-2021 school budget of about $138 million in March, and community members are expected to vote in the upcoming district election. Absentee ballots — the only way to vote this year, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo, because of the coronavirus pandemic — are due by June 9.

The tax levy, or the amount the district needs to raise through property taxes, is about $98 million, school officials said, which represents an increase of about $2.6 million over the current year’s budget. The total budget represents an increase of about $4.1 million over the current year.

Overall, School Superintendent Dr. Shari Camhi said at a Board of Education meeting, there is a budget-to-budget increase of 3.11 percent, but it stays within the tax cap of 2.78 percent.

The administrative piece comprises about 11 percent of the budget, while capital comprises about 12 percent and program, about 75 percent. Administrative costs are expected to be about $16 million, while capital is about $17.7 million, and program, $104 million.

District officials recognize the economic climate in New York because of the pandemic and said that it will almost certainly have a negative impact on school aid for years to come. Between ten and 50 percent of aid may be cut because of coronavirus complications.

The budget currently maintains programs, including arts, athletics and extra-curricular clubs — 18 at the elementary level, 22 at the middle school and 34 at the high school.

Additionally, Board of Education trustee Karyn Reid is seeking another term unopposed.

Additionally, earlier this year, State Sen. Todd Kaminsky and Assemblywoman Judy Griffin secured more than $2 .6 million in Smart School funding for the Baldwin School District. These funds are intended to be used to improve internet connectivity infrastructure and upgrade security systems throughout the district.

The district plans to install electronic security systems, cameras, access control mechanisms, locks and intercoms to bolster safety for all students in Baldwin public schools. The district is also using the funds to replace and repair wiring throughout the school system to improve internet service.