The road to Levittown Schools’ district elections is winding to a close, and before residents cast their ballots to decide the financial fate of their children’s education for yet another school year, the board of education presented one of their final reminders to the public of the hard work they put into their 2016-17 spending plan at their May 4 meeting.
Assistant Superintendent for Business, William Pastore, noted that as part of the budget process, the Levittown School District is required to hold a final series of budget hearings and presentations for local residents before the May 17 vote. The proposal, he said, is to make sure the public is able to make an informed decision when they hit the polls.
“The Levittown School District is cognizant of the rising property taxes and remains steadfast in its commitment to limit the tax burden on the community,” he said. “Through careful and resourceful planning and a collaborative effort with central administration, the board has proposed a 2016-17 budget totaling $205,449,470 that keeps rising costs minimal while preserving and enhancing key instructional and co-curricular programs for students.”
Pastore noted that the state’s tax levy cap, which was previously set to expire, has been extended. Therefore, he said, Levittown Schools worked diligently to craft a spending plan that would adhere to the tax cap while not only maintaining vital programs and staffing, but supporting important new additions as well.
“In preparing this budget, the board elected to adopt a tax levy increase of 0.84 percent, which is at the allowable tax levy cap as per state law and which realizes a budget to budget increase of 1.8 percent,” said Pastore. “This proposed spending plan maintains and enhances current instructional and co-curricular programs, including the one-to-one tablet initiatives, curriculum aligned with the New York State Common Core Standards, refreshed technology and the purchase of school buses. It also includes adoption of the College Board’s AP Capstone program, the implementation of robotics classes and enhancement of the middle school’s computer literature classes.”
In addition to the proposed 2016-17 budget, the community will have a second proposition on the table: whether or not to allow administration to utilize $4 million from the Capital Reserve Fund to perform district improvement projects.
“These projects will include district-wide improvements to the electrical systems and masonry,” said Pastore. “The capital reserve has been used to fund projects such as renovations to the weight and locker rooms at Division Avenue and Salk, as well as cooling stations throughout the district. The expenditure of funds from the capital reserve fund has no impact on the tax levy.”
Pastore asked residents to educate themselves on the specifics of the proposed 2016-17 budget and, armed with that information, vote in the best interests of their children and the school district that serves them.
“We encourage you to become familiar with the proposed budget and capital reserve expenditures, as well as information on voting locations and times, voting qualifications, absentee ballots and budget hearing information,” he said.
The Levittown School District budget vote is Tuesday, May 17, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. If residents have any questions about voting, they may call the District Clerk at 516-434-7002.
