By EVAN NEMEROFF
which included constructing a budget that is lower than the current operating budget without diminishing essential instructional services to students, continuing the $17 million of capital projects approved by the voters, relocating all fifth graders to the middle school, closing one of the four elementary schools and housing all pre-k through fourth graders in the three remaining elementary buildings. At a December school board meeting, these goals were approved unanimously by the board, along with the assurance that there would be no more than a 2 percent increase in the tax levy.
While many of these goals have been met and are being put into motion, the school board was unable to recommend a tax levy for next year of less than 2 percent, having to settle for a 4.5 percent increase. “During the economic climate that we currently face, the proposed budget is fiscally responsible for what we are trying to accomplish,” Fitzsimons said. “Unfortunately, we did not meet the tax levy goal, but we have money in our tax reduction reserve that could bring down the tax levy a little.”
At a March 3 school board work meeting, the district administrators presented a $92.2 million budget for next year, which would be a $3.3 million decrease from the current operating budget of $95.5 million. This is the first time in three years that the Lawrence School District’s school board proposed a lower budget along with a higher tax levy. Since 2006-07, the district’s tax levy has gone down a total of 6.78 percent. In the past four years, District 15 had an average budget increase of .2 percent each year and a decrease in the tax levy of .6 percent over the same time period.
The estimated revenue from the tax levy on the proposed budget will be $77 million. The district is expecting to receive $7.2 million in state aid, and another $7.8 million from outside sources of revenue.
Slightly more than $77.6 million, or an estimated 84 percent, of the budget will focus on school programs. This includes instruction, special education, technology, library and audio visual, attendance and health services, extra curricular activities, and transportation. The remaining portion will be allocated towards administration and capital, which includes operation and maintenance of school facilities, debt service and transfers to the capital fund.
With projected enrollment for the 2009-10 school year estimated to be 3,138, there are plans to cut a total of 27 positions from administration, teachers, and pupil personnel services, along with an additional 51 people who are civil service support staff. “With student enrollment projected to drop, we will cut teachers at all levels, even special services,” Fitzsimons said. “We do not expect fewer teachers to affect our student to teacher ratio, where we are well below the cap at most levels and do a good job with this throughout the district.”
Lawrence School Board President Murray Foreman said that the budget reflects the goals set forth by the administrators. “The budget presented to us by the administration is fiscally responsible and it maintains all essential instructional programs,” Foreman said. “It might need some fine tuning, but the budget was within the parameters that we were looking at throughout the year.”
Comments about this story? Enemeroff@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 210.
