By Scott Brinton
The Central District Board of Education reviewed budget numbers during a special meeting on March 25.
Cynthia Regal, the district's assistant superintendent for business, said Bellmore-Merrick was able to control expenditures by putting off purchase of new furniture and equipment in all five schools -- Calhoun, Kennedy and Mepham high schools and Grand and Merrick Avenue middle schools. "We told all principals and department heads, 'Give us a bare-bones budget,'" Regal said.
At the same time, she added, the state required only a 1 percent increase in the district's contribution to employees' health benefits under the Empire Plan. "Benefits usually kill us," Regal said.
"Everyone just held the line this year."
Regal did not yet have a projected tax rate increase, saying that the state had not provided final aid allocation figures, so offering a tentative tax rate would be premature at this point. She said that the tax levy -- the total amount the district must raise in taxes to meet expenses -- is set to increase 5.97 percent, to $93.1 million, compared with $89.7 million in 2008-09.
Regal explained that the levy is set to rise primarily because the district took a $2 million hit in its state aid allocation. State aid accounts for 14 percent of the district's proposed spending plan, the lowest that figure has been in a decade. In 2000, aid accounted for nearly 20 percent of the Central District budget.
The school budget vote is set for Tuesday, May 19.
Comments about this story? SBrinton@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 203.
