CAZENOVIA — On April 15, the Cazenovia Central School District Board of Education (CCSD BOE) adopted a proposed expenditure budget of $38,826,826 for the 2024-25 school year.
The district was faced with a significant budget gap at the beginning of the 2024-25 budget development process. To close the gap, CCSD has proposed a 5.9 percent tax levy increase, fund balance use of $1,654,009, and strategic spending cuts totaling $399,295.
The budget for the current 2023-24 school year is $36,529,529 and includes an appropriated fund balance of $1,100,000 and a tax levy increase of 6.9 percent.
Before the BOE voted on the proposed 2024-25 budget, Assistant Superintendent/School Business Official Thomas Finnerty delivered a brief presentation.
He explained that at the start of the budget development process, the district’s draft revenue budget for 2024-25 totaled $36,760,210 while its draft expenditures budget totaled $39,226,121.
“Looking at the two together, the revenue and the expenditures [weren’t] lining up,” Finnerty said. “This is what we had to face right out of the gate this year. The revenue car was trailing way behind the expenditures. As we always talk about, there are really three ways of dealing with this. We can cut costs, we can raise revenues by raising taxes, or we can use more fund balance, which is the school district’s savings account.”
Finnerty reported that the district opted to take all three measures to mitigate the $2,465,911 gap between revenues and expenditures.
The district has proposed the following strategic cuts: reduce a foreign language position by attrition, reduce a library aid position by attrition, reduce an elementary school position by attrition, eliminate an on-site copy center, reduce BOCES printing, reduce Innovation Tech, and eliminate a mobile planetarium.
“Attrition is when someone elects to leave the district [and] we don’t fill that position,” Finnerty explained. “It could be a retirement, or it could be just someone resigning, and we opt not to fill the position.”
Because the proposed 2024-25 tax levy increase is above CCSD’s calculated tax levy limit of 4.02 percent, a supermajority of voters — 60 percent or more — will need to approve the budget for it to pass.
To give taxpayers an idea of the estimated impact a 5.9 percent tax levy increase might have on their bills, Finnerty presented examples using the median home assessment values in each of the municipalities in CCSD.
For a home with an assessed value of $266,100 in the Town of Cazenovia, a 5.9 percent increase would mean an estimated projected increase of $310.90. For a home assessed at $210,300 in the Village of Cazenovia, the estimated increase would be $245.71. For a home assessed at $136,700 in the Town of Fenner, the estimated increase would be $175.92, and for a home assessed at $179,900 in the Town of Nelson, the estimated increase would be $231.51.
Finnerty emphasized that the numbers he shared when discussing the impact of the tax levy increase were estimates.
“The tax base generally increases every year and that’s a great thing for us,” he said. “As our tax base increases, the tax rate goes down, so the rates could go down from here. Other things that can happen to individuals, like assessment changes, STAR changes, and exemption changes, can completely throw this off for individuals. So, I just want to keep saying that these are estimates.”
The district was recently notified by Senator Al Stirpe that some state funding will be restored; those funds are included in the district’s budget proposal.
Finnerty stated that it is possible that additional funds could be restored. If additional foundation aid is awarded to the district in the final New York State budget, the appropriated fund balance and the tax levy will be reduced equally to match the increase.
During the meeting’s second public comment period, Mark Tugaw, a seventh-grade social studies teacher at Cazenovia Middle School, commended the district administration and BOE for their efforts to be responsible to the taxpayers.
Tugaw stated that he currently pays school taxes in CCSD, Jamesville-DeWitt Central School District, and South Seneca Central School District. He recently also paid school taxes in East Syracuse-Minoa Central School District and Fayetteville Manlius School District.
“My taxes here are by far the lowest, so thank you for what you are doing to keep them that way,” he said. “[In Manlius,] I was in a house half the size of my Cazenovia house [and was] paying significantly more. With children in this district, I feel like they have more opportunities here because of the size of the district.”
April 11 budget message
CCSD announced its solution to the 2024-25 budget gap in an April 11 budget update on the district website.
“Because of rising costs and our district’s decrease in state aid allocated in the governor’s budget proposal, we are facing hard decisions this year — and expect to again next year,” Superintendent Christopher DiFulvio said in the update. “We truly appreciate everyone who has shared their questions, concerns, and ideas with us. Your input has been essential as we navigate these challenging financial decisions.”
According to the district, the proposed combination of tax levy increase, fund balance use, and cuts allows the district to preserve more student programming and staff positions than initially anticipated and is intended to alleviate the burden on taxpayers.
“Our student programming and our staff at Cazenovia are the backbone of this district,” DiFulvio said. “The reality of having to make cuts is incredibly painful. There are no easy choices here, but it’s our responsibility to find the best solutions to close the gap, sustain the excellence of our district, and preserve our identity.”
DiFulvio also extended his gratitude to the community for their advocacy regarding state funding and their input throughout the budget development process.
“We’re also thankful to the board of education for their unwavering support of our students, staff, and budget initiatives,” he concluded. “Their dedication enables us to maintain the high standards of education and support that our community expects and deserves.”
Important budget-related dates
The district is planning to hold a community event at the Emory Avenue Complex on Monday, May 13 from 9 to 11:30 a.m.
Attendees will have the opportunity to tour the school, meet the superintendent, and receive a budget presentation from Finnerty.
“We are going to be marketing that to people in the community that don’t have kids in the school,” DiFulvio said during the April 15 BOE meeting.
A public hearing on the proposed 2024-25 budget will be held on Tuesday, May 14 at 6:30 p.m. in the high school auditorium.
The annual budget vote and election will take place on Tuesday, May 21 from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the middle school auxiliary gym.
The ballot will also include a proposition authorizing the district to purchase and finance three 65-passenger replacement school buses at a total maximum cost of $533,102.
Additionally, voters will be asked to authorize the district to levy a tax of $515,181 for the Cazenovia Public Library and $192,055 for the New Woodstock Free Library.
BOE meeting dates are listed on the district website and the school calendar. For more information, visit cazenoviacsd.com.
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