Three propositions and two school board seats to be voted on
By Jason Emerson
Editor
The Cazenovia Central School District annual budget vote is scheduled to occur this Tuesday, May 17, and district voters will have the choice to approve the school and local library budgets, the purchase of four school busses and to elect two members to the Board of Education.
District administrators and the board of education held a public hearing on the budget proposals last Tuesday, May 10, to explain the details on final time before the vote occurs.
“As I have said before, I think this budget is responsible to programs, responsible to voters and responsible to the future,” said District Superintendent Matt Reilly.
The election propositions are:
✓A $28 million budget that 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. The tax impact to district voters is expected to be zero, since the tax rate will remain at $17.43 per $1,000 of assessed value, which is the same as last year, said Assistant Superintendent Thomas Finnerty. This is the lowest tax rate of every district within the OCM BOCES district, Finnerty said.
✓The purchase of four new 66-passenger school busses at a cost of $461,341. The busses will be repaid over five years, and the district will receive 62.9 percent in state transportation aid for the purchase.
✓The approval of operating budgets for both the Cazenovia Public Library ($394,916) and the New Woodstock Free Library ($161,948). Finnerty said the school district has no authority over these budgets but under state law it puts the proposals on its ballot each year and collects and pays the taxes for the two libraries.
✓The election of two members to the district Board of Education. Incumbents Kathy Hahn and Lisa Lounsbury are both running unopposed for reelection.
The Cazenovia district budget vote will occur from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday, May 17, in the middle school auxiliary gymnasium. This year there will also be new voting machines. Under state law, the district had to replace the old lever ballot system with a new bubble form computer scanning system.
The board of education will hold its regular monthly meeting at 6:30 p.m. on May 17 after which it willadjourn to the middle school auxiliary gym and certify the vote results.
