2009-2010 School District Budget
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Answers to
Your Questions |
Residents are invited to contact the Port Jervis School District
with questions, comments, and feedback about the
proposed 2009-10 budget. Listed below are answers to
some of the frequently-asked questions that were e-mailed
to the district or asked at a community budget meeting. This
page was updated throughout the budget development process
as new questions were asked.
QUESTION: Is it
true that district transportation services will not be
privatized if the budget is defeated?
ANSWER:
The outcome of the budget vote will not affect the privatization
of transportation – only the length of the contract. The
decision to privatize was approved by the School Board in
December 2008. On April 23, the Board awarded the transportation
services contract to Quality Bus Services. Whether the budget
passes or fails, the private contractor will begin to service 20
home-to-school runs, field trips, and athletic runs on September
1. If the budget is defeated, the district would have to adopt a
contingency budget, under which it would be prohibited from
entering any multi-year contracts. The contract would then have
to be re-bid at the end of the year, which could result in
higher costs. If the budget passes, the district would be able
to enter a five-year contract with Quality Bus.
QUESTION: Will
privatizing transportation result in lower costs? I've heard a
rumor that privatization isn't going to save the district money.
ANSWER:
Yes, once the fleet is fully privatized in 2010-11, the
estimated annual cost savings to tax payers will be $500,000.
Additionally, it is important to note that, if the district
didn't privatize, it would still need to build a new
transportation facility to maintain the fleet of buses. At
today's construction prices, it would cost the district
approximately $300,000 a year for the next 30 years to bond the
construction of a new facility.
QUESTION: Why is
the district purchasing fuel for the private contractor's buses?
Why isn't the contractor purchasing its own fuel?
ANSWER:
It is actually more cost-efficient for the district to purchase
the fuel for the buses. Unlike private businesses, school
districts are able to purchase fuel at a lower, tax-free, price
directly from state-contracted vendors. The fuel is then
allocated to the private bus contractor based on actual live
mileage.
QUESTION: Will
recent changes to the STAR program impact our local school
taxes? I've heard these changes are driving up next year's
taxes.
ANSWER:
The proposed budget represents the lowest tax levy increase in
recent history. The STAR (School Tax Relief) program is a state
program that the district has no control over.
What Port Jervis can control is
the tax levy. The local tax levy is determined by the amount of
money the district needs to fund costs for the coming year after
subtracting state aid and other projected revenues. Given the
state of the economy, the School Board and district
administrators worked together to keep the tax increase as low
as possible without sacrificing the quality of our students’
education. Offset by cost cutting measures and allocations from
the district fund balance, the proposed budget carries a 1.5
percent tax levy increase.
While the state Legislature recently voted to eliminate the
Middle Class STAR rebate – the separate rebate check homeowners
received the past two years – the school tax exemption program
is still in place. The Basic and Enhanced STAR tax exemptions
are still available to homeowners. Those who take advantage of
these and other exemptions can save hundreds of dollars a year
on their school taxes.
(More information
on STAR exemptions is provided in the next question.)
QUESTION:
The state has
eliminated the STAR rebate checks. Will I continue to get the
STAR exception on my school taxes?
ANSWER:
Homeowners will
continue to receive the benefits of the Basic and Enhanced STAR
exemptions on their school property tax bills.
While the 2009-10
state budget does not contain funding for School Tax Relief
(STAR) rebate checks, all New Yorkers who own their own homes
can continue to significantly reduce their school taxes through
the STAR program.
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Basic STAR exemption:
Available for owner-occupied, primary
residencies - regardless of the owner’s age or income.
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Enhanced STAR exemption:
Available on the primary residence
of residents, age 65 and up, with yearly household incomes
below the state standard.
Please note that the program is not administered by school
districts. More information on the STAR program is
available at
www.orps.state.ny.us.
QUESTION:
What would happen if the budget is defeated and the district
adopts a contingency budget?
Under New York State law, if a school budget is defeated,
the Board of Education can either put the same or revised budget
up for another vote or move directly to a contingency budget.
This year, Port’s proposed budget only six-hundreths (.06) of a
percent above the contingency cap established by the state.
This means if the
budget is defeated, major cuts would not have to be made to meet
the expenditure cap. However, cuts would need to be made to meet
the definition of a contingency budget.
The district would have to cut all items which are considered
non-contingency expenses: student supplies and equipment
purchases such as maintenance equipment and the replacement of
athletic uniforms. By law, the district would also be required
to charge all community organizations to use district buildings
and grounds.
A failed
budget would come with many restrictions, but the tax impact
would be similar to that of the proposed budget.
(See
question at the top of the page for more information on how a
contingency budget would affect the transportation services
contract.)
QUESTION: If the district has a fund balance from last year's operating
budget, why doesn't it use some of the money to reduce next
year's taxes?
ANSWER:
Whenever there is a fund balance, the district applies a portion
of the money toward the coming year's budget to offset the tax
burden. The 2009-10 proposed budget includes an allocation to
use $630,775 from the fund balance to reduce the projected tax
levy. It is important to manage the application of the fund
balance to avoid excessive tax levy increases in future years.
QUESTION: Why does the district want to use fund balance money to
demolish the condemned bus garage/maintenance storage facility
and build a replacement storage shed?
ANSWER:
The district must demolish the condemned bus garage and
maintenance facility. Under the proposed budget, $715,700 would
be transferred from the current year's fund
balance to next year's operating budget to cover project costs.
The fund balance allocation would allow the district to demolish
the condemned structure and build a much-needed maintenance
building at no new cost to the taxpayers. By including the
project in the proposed operating budget, the district would
also be able to
apply for state aid to help further defer the costs.
QUESTION: What is the benefit of applying $1 million from the
fund balance to reduce debt on the $14.6 million Capital
Improvement Project?
ANSWER:
Based on current borrowing and interest rates, the financial
consultants who manage the district's investment portfolio said
the most fiscally-responsible use for the $1 million fund
balance is to reduce debt on the $14.6 million Capital
Improvement Project. The long-term return on this investment is
approximately $100,000 a year for the next 15 years.
QUESTION:
What values guide budgetary decisions?
ANSWER:
Every year the Board of Education sets budgetary goals. Some of
these goals may be similar from year to year, however changes
are made based on the current economic climate and fiscal
situation. For the preparation of the 2009-2010 budget, the
following goals have been developed:
- Keep tax levy increase below 3 percent, while maintaining programs
that continue to move the district forward.
- Continue to work at the state level for state aid
formula reform.
- Maximize existing resources and seek out new revenues.
- Continue to implement facility improvement plan, addressing building
safety, security, and energy-efficiency needs.
Links to other budget information:
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Budget Development Calendar
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