For the “first time in a long time,” in the words of Cazenovia Board of Education President Jan Woodworth, the school district’s annual budget makes no cuts to programs or personnel and no district tax rate increase for the 2016-17 year.
This good news was announced at the school board’s April 18 regular monthly meeting to a room filled with students, teachers and administrators, many of them present to learn the final budget decisions by the board.
“This budget is responsible to programs, responsible to voters and responsible to the future,” said District Superintendent Matt Reilly.
The district’s $28 million proposed budget funds all current district programs, does not exceed this year’s state-mandated tax cap of zero percent and uses no district reserve funds. The budget also refills two teaching positions in the music department that saw retirements this year, reinstates a middle school media specialist (librarian) position that was eliminated years ago due to budget stress and increases an elementary school social worker position from part time to full time, Reilly said.
“I think we approved a healthy budget that meets the needs of students while being fiscally responsible to taxpayers,” said Woodworth. “I’m proud of the work the school board did on it.”
Initial assumptions for the district’s 2016-17 budget were for a $400,000 deficit with potential program cuts and a tax rate increase above the tax cap being considered as necessary ways to create a balanced budget. Once the state legislature passed its budget on April 1, however, and eliminated the Gap Elimination Adjustment — restoring $568,000 in state aid this year to the Cazenovia district — the budget outlook improved dramatically.
During a budget work session on April 11, the school board discussed the need to exceed the state tax cap by 2 percent in order to retain all current programs and avoid any use of reserve funds. During the April 18 meeting, Assistant Superintendent Thomas Finnerty said it had been decided that the district would “dip into” its debt service fund instead as a way to avoid going over the tax cap to fund the budget.
Reilly said the debt service fund is money set aside for just such a purpose, and using it instead of exceeding the tax cap is about the long-range fiscal health of the district and “looking forward to the future.”
A public hearing on the proposed budget is scheduled to be held at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 10, in the Cazenovia High School auditorium.
The public vote to approve or reject the budget is scheduled to occur from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday, May 17, in the middle school auxiliary gym.
Also on the May 17 ballot will be a proposal to allow the district to purchase four new school busses and to elect two members of the Board of Education. Current board members Kathy Hahn and Lisa Lounsbury are up for reelection, and are running unopposed.
