Seaford School Board Targets 2.93% Budget Increase

The Seaford Board of Education has hit the home stretch in its budget crafting process and is expected to adopt its spending 2011/12 spending proposal this coming Thursday.

At Thursday night’s Board of Education workshop meeting a majority of the trustees expressed support for adopting a fiscal plan that would represent a 2.93 percent increase over the current budget, which would equate to a 8.9 percent tax levy rise. The consensus of the most school board members at Thursday night’s meeting was that in order to pass the budget on May 17 it was important to come up with a tax levy increase of less than 9 percent. The tax levy is the total amount that a district must raise in property taxes in order to meet expenses.

“It’s our job to come up with numbers that they are going to accept,” said Seaford Board of Education vice president Richard DiBlasio on the importance of adopting a budget plan that has a realistic chance of being approved by voters.

Trustee Michael Sapraicone said at the end of the four-hour meeting at that he disagrees with going after a 2.93 percent budget increase and thinks the public would support a spending plan that rises more than 3 percent.

Seaford is faced with having a higher than usual tax levy this year due in large part to a large drop in state aid. Under the budget approved by the State Legislature this week Seaford loses $1.1 million in aid from Albany. Seaford did however get an additional $103,611 in the final budget plan that was not included in Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s initial proposal.

In addition to a large projected reduction in state aid, Seaford only has a little over $600,000 in reserve funds, the second lowest total of Nassau County’s 56 districts, according to Board of Education president Brian Fagan.

Some of the potential program that are being considered in Seaford’s budget proposal are the district’s marching band camp, seventh grade basketball and volleyball teams, varsity winter track, summer remedial programs and one season of cheerleading. A 2.93 percent budget increase would also mean a reduction of some teaching positions and other staff members.

Conboy emphasized that all potential cuts are being done with great pain. “Everything we’re talking about cutting we helped build,” said Conboy. “Everything that shows up on one of these lists [for cuts] is with great regret.”

For Seaford to maintain all current programs and staff there would need to be a 7 percent budget increase, according to district officials. In an effort to try and avoid some cuts in a 2.93 percent budget proposal district officials are going to meet in the coming days to see if some savings could be found by spending less in technology and staff supervision at sporting events.

Seaford will be attempting to pass its budget on May 17 to avoid the possibility of operating on austerity should voters strike down the proposal a second time. Under a contingency budget scenario Seaford may be forced to cut its full-day kindergarten to a half-day program and eliminate all middle school athletic teams as well as instrumental music at the fourth grade level, according to district officials. Austerity would mean the budget would rise 2.26 percent but the district would be limited to only spending on bare essential items.

Seaford is scheduled to adopt its proposed budget on Thursday atSeaford Manor School starting at 7:30 p.m.