Hudson Valley school budget proposals hike spending 3 percent, taxes 3.5 percent

Hudson Valley schools are proposing to hike spending by 3.5 percent on average, with school tax levies likely to go up about 3 percent, in budgets that will go before voters on May 21.

Statewide, school spending is on track to rise an average of 3 percent, while tax levies would rise 3.1 percent, under present budget proposals. Only 29 districts -- just 4 percent throughout the state -- will be asking voters to approve an override of their tax levy limits. An override requires approval by 60 percent of those who vote.

Politicians frequently describe the tax cap law as limiting school tax increases to no more than 2 percent a year, but in reality the law includes leeway, allowing local authorities a cushion where costs are beyond their control, for example pension and health care costs.

Education leaders say school boards struggled this year to create budgets that balanced good education programs with sanity on taxes.

"I've seen school board members struggling with what is the right thing to do for the kids in their buildings and for their public," said Debbie Gatti, president of the Rockland County School Boards Association. "No one wants to be out there over their tax cap limit."

SECOND GO-ROUND FOR VOTING ON TAX OVERRIDES

The state capped the ability of local districts to raise school taxes beginning with the 2012-13 school budgets. The vote on May 21 will be just the second time that school districts will test their ability to breach the cap.

In Westchester, the school districts attempting tax cap overrides are Scarsdale, Briarcliff Manor, Ardsley and Irvington. In Orange County, Valley Central, Tuxedo, Kiryas Joel and Cornwall are seeking overrides.

No districts in Rockland County will seek an override.

WESTCHESTER SCHOOL LEADERS HAVE HAD IT WITH CUTS

Leaders in Westchester schools seeking overrides have said they've cut staff and programs sharply in the past few years, and that digging deeper would affect the educational programs that attract families to their school districts.

"There's nothing left for us to cut, we've done that," said Lauren Allan, superintendent of the Ardsley Union Free School District. Allan predicted that other school districts would soon face the same predicament. "A lot of people are just a year away from having to override."

Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES Region Superintendent Jim Langlois observed that the districts overriding the cap each have unique factors driving that choice.

"Each one of them has their own particular issue that they're struggling with," Langlois said.

Overall, Langlois said school districts have managed well under the cap, so far. But he believes that, ultimately, the cap will be ruinous for education.

"For two years in a row people have been cutting teaching positions and eliminating sports. It's straining the ability of districts to provide the quality of education they're used to providing," Langlois said.

Scarsdale Superintendent Michael McGill told Newsday recently that his board no longer wants to drain reserve funds and is choosing not to trim back the district's educational offerings further, trusting that taxpayers in Scarsdale will back quality education.

Under the tax cap, school districts statewide appear to be draining their reserves, the data shows. School rainy day funds would shrink by 12.5 percent next school year, under the budgets proposed.

Terrence Olivo, chief operating officer of Orange Ulster BOCES, said school districts have kept budget and tax levies modest while struggling with uncontrollable increases in pension and health care costs. Olivo did say that the tax cap has forced many school districts to make wiser spending decisions.

"It's forced us to look at change we've known we needed for a long time," Olivo said.

School districts did receive an increase in state aid to help craft budgets, which was lauded by Tim Kremer, executive director of the New York State School Boards Association in a statement.

"This year's state aid increase has helped avert some layoffs and program cuts and, in some cases, has allowed districts to restore positions and programs," Kremer said.