Wantagh, Seaford School Districts Get Little Help in Cuomo Budget Proposal

Both the Wantagh and Seaford school districts will not be getting much help from Albany for their 2013/14 budgets, according to preliminary state aid figures released this week by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

When factoring in building aid, Seaford would see a drop of $729,566 or 6.88 percent under the budget proposal unveiled by Governor Cuomo. Without building aid, which is provided for projects Seaford has completed from a $21.5 million capital improvements proposition approved in 2007, the district’s aid rises 4.53 percent under the governor’s fiscal plan.

Wantagh’s state aid is slated to jump $545,313 or 4 percent in Cuomo’s budget. However, with $649,606 of the $10.5 million in estimated total aid geared toward a planned conversation to full-day kindergarten, Assistant Superintendent for Business Dana DiCapua said she is hopeful more funds can be brought to the district when the full legislature adopts its spending plan.

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Seaford Superintendent Brian Conboy said he was not surprised by the drop in state funding since last year the district received a higher than expected amount of deferred building aid.

“Last year during our budget preparation the state gave us almost a million dollars that we should have received the prior year, which they called deferred building aid, so we knew that wouldn’t continue into this year but still when you get two plus million in one year and the net year you get about a million less, you have to deal with that in your budget,” said Conboy, who also emphasized his hope for additional help from Albany. “We had envisioned what our building aid would be stabilized at after the completion of our bond projects but it still creates a challenge every year in budgeting when you get a big amount one year and don’t get it the next.”

Budget discussions are scheduled to begin soon in both Wantagh and Seaford, who have until mid April to adopt their proposed 2013/13 spending plans that will go before voters on May 21. The state legislature has an April 1 deadline to adopt its 2013/14 budget and determine funding for each school district.