By JOSEPH KELLARD
"Property taxes have weighed into it," Satin said about his pending move. "But if my house wasn't paid off, I would have to move out of here."
New York state residents like Satin pay the highest property taxes nationwide, but there is some comparative good news in Oceanside: The school district is proposing a $111.4 million budget for 2006-07 that includes a 5.6 percent tax increase and a 4.8 increase in the tax levy, both figures a shade below the Nassau County averages. If passed, the budget will increase the average Oceanside homeowner's property taxes by about $300.
Factoring into Oceanside's tax levy ‹ the total amount of money to be raised from property taxes ‹ is a $1.4 million increase in state aid the district received, thanks to proposals that Sen. Dean Skelos and Assemblymen Harvey Weisenberg and Bob Barra added to the state budget. "We applied all the aid to the taxpayers to lower the tax levy increase as far as we could," said Superintendent Dr. Herb Brown.
Despite the increased aid, Oceanside still receives just 12 to 14 percent of its budget in state aid annually, a figure that was at 35 percent in 1990. Meanwhile, over the past decade, state property taxes have climbed by an average of 60 percent, with Nassau and Suffolk homeowners recording increases double the statewide average, according to a report by state Comptroller Alan Hevesi that was released two weeks ago.
Since voters rejected Oceanside¹s budget two years ago, the district has focused on keeping the community more informed on budget and tax issues, whether through its newsletters or at talks before various community organizations, from PTAs to the Kiwanis Club to the Oceanside Civic Association (OCA). Earlier this year the district hosted its first tax forum, at which Satin encouraged fellow residents to write their representatives about bringing more state aid to the district.
"I certainly think the newsletters and talks have helped in terms of informing the public, but as far as the end result of it, it's hard to know," Brown said.
With over 6,000 students, Oceanside spends an average of $2,500 less per student than the county average, and devotes 67 percent of its budget to instruction (teachers, textbooks and computers), the highest percentage in the county, along with Rockville Centre, according to district officials. They also pointed out that the district¹s SAT scores were the highest ever this year, and continue to exceed state and national averages; that 500 students take college-level advanced placement courses and exams; and that 91 percent of high school students graduated with Regents diplomas last year.
Oceanside attributes its rising costs primarily to increases in such items as fuel oil, health insurance and testing mandated by the No Child Left Behind law, as well as other unfunded state and federal mandates. However, Brown said the district saves considerably on fuel simply by not busing students beyond ninth grade to the high school.
"Major companies are cutting their employees¹ benefits -- why can't we?" resident Shirley Elfie asked Brown at a budget talk he gave at a recent meeting hosted by the OCA. He noted that Oceanside's active teachers pay 15 percent of their health care premiums, compared with the 10 percent county average, and that retirees pay 50 percent, the highest allowed by state law. As to salaries, Oceanside teachers earn in the medium range of the 56 county school districts.
"We don't think we are doing anything extravagant," Brown said. "We think we pay our teachers reasonably." He added that teachers' salaries start at about $45,000, "and if you expect them to live out here, I'm not so sure how they can for less."
Barry Baranoff, a long-time Oceanside resident and retired New York City social studies teacher, believes the district's budgets have been reasonable and that education has improved under Brown and the board. "I think Oceanside has done a good job of keeping things in the medium range," he said.
Regarding Long Island residents like Satin who are heading south, in part or solely due to property tax increases, Baranoff said, "Some say let people move and we¹ll just get others to move in. But that's not the answer." He pointed to reassessments and the complicated ways in which they affect taxes. "The way that reassessments have affected people, it's not just Oceanside but all over. ... That has to be corrected," Baranoff said.
One retiree who attended the tax forum said he had to return to work because reassessments raised his taxes dramatically.
Meanwhile, Satin, who has three children enrolled in Oceanside schools, said he has consistently voted no on budgets for 25 years. While he thinks the district provides good education, he does so because "I've always felt that they spend their money foolishly," he said.
Satin is among a number of Oceanside residents who have expressed to the Herald the various ways they believe the district could cut costs even further, whether deciding against or putting off spending on items such as laptop computers for students or information mailings that can be posted on the district's Web site instead. Some question district additions such as new classrooms at the high school and middle school, and new cafeterias in several schools, including schools 3, 4, 5 and 9.
"All of these things are addressed at public meetings where residents are given plenty of opportunity to state their opinions," Brown said. "These things are parts of budgets and bond issues that people can vote on." The cafeterias, for example, were built for different reasons, he explained. At schools 3 and 5, students used to eat in the basement with asbestos pipes above them.
Satin said that he has attended many board and budget meetings, and has written letters to his elected representatives through the years. He believes that whether residents are for or against the budget, they should get out and vote. "If you have something against the way the system is, run for the board or at least go out and vote," he said. "Don't fall into the sinkhole. Fight it now before it's too late. And the best way to fight it is through the power of the pen."
The Oceanside budget vote will be held at schools 5, 6 and 8 and Oceanside High School from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Tuesday.
Comments about this story? JKellard@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 287.
