By Marley Seaman
Dr. Robert Britto, Baldwin's superintendent of schools, said that none of the items on the budget received fixed amounts of money. Instead, individuals requested specific amounts and were required to justify the expenses to Britto and his staff.
The administrative section of the budget grew to $10.6 million, an increase of almost $750,000 over the current year. Many of the changes were due not to increased spending, but to reallocations and "clarifications" in the budget. "This way it's more clear which areas we are spending on," said Gene Levenstein, the district's interim assistant superintendent for business, who presented the plan.
The proposed capital budget was set at $13.2 million, an increase of almost $850,000. One of the largest new expenses is the salary of a new, state-mandated internal auditor. Baldwin already has two auditors and a claims auditor, Levenstein said, but New York state now requires an internal auditor in the wake of the Roslyn school scandal. The new auditor has a salary of $42,000.
The proposal also includes more than $77,000 in new funds for curriculum development and supervision, with most of the money going to Nassau BOCES.
The rising price of fuel is estimated to cost the district more than $87,000. Only Baldwin Middle School's fuel budget was projected to stay the same; each of the other district schools will pay at least $4,500 more in the coming year. "We're experiencing, obviously, what everybody else is," said Levenstein.
Although the Baldwin Senior High School fuel budget grew by $25,000, Levenstein said it remains much lower than expected because a portion of the high school property is in Freeport. "The high school is in the Freeport electric area, which saves the school district a huge amount of money," he said. District Facilities Director Michael Sheehan estimated the savings at $130,000 to $150,000 this year.
Britto said that insurance premiums as well as required retirement contributions have also grown.
Administrative costs rise
A planned demographic study increased the business administration budget by $61,760. The study, discussed at this year's public input meeting, will allow the board to take a detailed look at the population and demographic trends in Baldwin, including real estate trends and birth rates, and should yield results in about a year.
The demographic study comes after parents questioned class size and school overcrowding in the elementary schools at the input meeting, and asked the board to consider redistricting the schools. Board members said the study would assess which schools, if any, have overcrowding problems. Although redistricting is a possibility, board President James Scannell said at the meeting that it was a solution the board would prefer to avoid. If Baldwin were redistricted, the boundaries of all the elementary schools would change, he said, and the process could become complicated and controversial.
The last demographic study in Baldwin took place in 1995.
Britto said that the budget increases would also pay for the replacement of equipment, supplies and furniture, which he described as a continuing process. "In order to be both educationally responsive and fiscally responsible, we identified needs and took the approach of meeting those needs through a cyclical, multi-year plan," he said. "As such, I believe this proposed budget and future budgets that stem from it will be fiscally predictable, stable and sustainable."
Funds for two new school buses are also included in the proposed plan.
A second budget workshop will be held at the district office on March 22. The larger portion of the budget, devoted to programs, will be discussed at that meeting.
Comments about this story? MSeaman@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 282.
