By Andrew Coen
If the budget were to fail, it would mean District 14 would operate with a contingency budget for the first time ever.
Voters shot down the initial proposed $81.8 million budget, a 9.57 percent increase, by 811 votes, 2,334 to 1,523, on May 17, forcing district officials to slash more than $2.5 million from the original plan.
The newly proposed $79.3 million budget contains a tax-levy increase of 6.73 percent compared to the near 11 percent tax-levy hike in the initial budget proposal, which made it one of the highest in Nassau County. District officials attributed the budget increases mainly to mandated costs beyond their control, including hikes in the teachers' retirement system, health insurance, special education and utilities.
The new proposal would mean an estimated 9.02 percent tax increase for the average District 14 homeowner, according to the Nassau County Assessor's Office. The tax rate would be an estimated $348.58 per $100 of the assessed value of a home, according to the assessor. A Hewlett-Woodmere homeowner with a house priced at $551,800 would see an estimated school tax bill of $9,617 compared with $9,996 in the initial budget proposal.
The Hewlett-Woodmere Central Council PTA is making its traditional phone calls and mailing out fliers to get the word out to the community about the crucial need to pass the budget. "PTA is aggressively acting to communicate to the residents of the district and explain to our community that the 6.18 [percent] increase is a responsible budget," said Stephanie Price, co-president of Hewlett-Woodmere Central Council PTA. "The actual difference between this budget and an austerity budget is minuscule and we don't want the children's education to be held hostage to taxes."
"We strongly urge every citizen who cares about our children and our community to come to the polls June 21 and vote yes for the budget," said Co- President of Central Council PTA Barbara Feldman. "If we don't achieve an approved budget, we will be forced by New York State law to go on an austerity plan and lose control over our children's education."
If the district were forced to work with a contingency budget for the first time in its history, it would total $76,982,792, a 3.06 percent increase over the 2004-05 budget, forcing the school district to spend money only on essential items and cut programs like continuing education and summer recreation, according to district officials. The tax-levy hike on contingency would be 5.3 percent.
According to Dr. Peter Weber, assistant superintendent for business, the difference between a contingency budget and the newly proposed budget would be around $94 a year for the typical District 14 taxpayer. "Austerity would hurt our kids and damage quality of life for the entire community, the elderly as well as children and real estate values," said Price.
The cuts resulting from a second rejection of the Hewlett-Woodmere budget would mean the loss of around 15 staff members, including one assistant principal at Hewlett High School, the BOCES public relations position and two occupational therapists, district officials said. Some of the district-wide cuts to reduce the budget include $97,000 in staff conference and travel, $200,000 in furniture and equipment and $50,000 in instructional supplies.
The proposed budget also raises fees for the use of facilities, which would add around $780,000 in revenue for the district, according to school officials. The one-time application fee for use of a facility or athletic field would rise from $50 to $60, while hourly rates would also increase slightly.
"Working with the input from our community, the Board of Education is proposing a budget that is fiscally responsible as well as educationally sound," School Board President Howard Weinick said in a prepared statement. "A yes vote for the 6.18 percent budget [increase] means that we can continue to maintain the classroom size, keep all classroom teachers and our tradition of educational excellence. A no vote equals a contingency or austerity budget that forces the reduction of classroom staff, programs and services and results in the loss of local control."
All of the $865,000 in capital and maintenance projects proposed in the initial budget will remain, with the exception of plans to resurface and replace the nets at the Hewlett High School tennis courts, which district officials have said are badly in need of repair. Putting off the project to improve the tennis courts, which are used frequently by residents, will cut $163,000 from the original budget, according to Weber. The projects that district officials plan to keep in the budget include the replacement of the heating pipes at Ogden Elementary School and Franklin Early Childhood Center, repair of the Woodmere Middle School roof, replacement of a set of doors by the middle school auditorium that are old and worn and the replacement of the high school's fuel tank monitoring system. Other cuts made by district officials included $20,000 in the BOCES environmental education program geared toward improving science education in the elementary school and $54,000 in the BOCES Model Schools program at the middle school. The plan to add four new athletic teams to the middle school to create more opportunities for students to participate in athletics was also cut, resulting in savings of around $50,000.
Voting on Tuesday, June 21, will take place from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. at the Woodmere Education Center, One Johnson Place.
Lawrence budget revote
District 15 residents went to the polls on Wednesday, June 15, after press time, to vote on Lawrence's new proposed budget. The revised budget proposal is $88.4 million, a 3.5 percent increase, which is around $1,000 less than what a contingency budget would be if the budget were defeated, according to district officials.
The original budget proposal of $89.3 million, a 4.54 percent increase, was rejected by 397 votes on May 17.
Comments about this story? Acoen@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 210.
