The Syosset School District held its introductory budget meeting at South Woods Middle School on Jan. 12, and attendees got a preview of what to expect in the next few weeks.
In the first of five budget meetings, which are scheduled to take place until the budget vote on May 19, Syosset Schools Superintendent Dr. Thomas Rogers and assistant superintendent for business Dr. Patricia Rufo, conducted the meeting and outlined the goals of the 2015-16 Syosset school budget.
Rogers said this year the goal is to preserve student opportunities while maintaining fiscal health. He continued that some of the budget issues to be discussed in the meetings will include the tax cap, pension costs and health insurance increases, and the state’s technology bond act.
Rufo said that this year there will be some relief in the rates paid for Teacher Retirement Services, but that could be offset by the rise in health insurance and provisions of the Affordable Care Act.
The presentation included a refresher on what the tax cap really means, how it affects the tax levy (which the district controls) and how that levy is allocated to actual tax bills (which the County assessor controls).
Rufo broke the budget into sections: capital, administrative, program and revenue. The January meeting focused on the capital portion of the budget, which includes custodial services, building maintenance, building security, debt services and inter-fund transfers. The presentation indicated that in the security section of the capital budget, there could be a significant hike in expenditures as the district looks to upgrade security equipment and increase patrols in response to some incidents.
Future budget presentations will discuss the administrative, program and revenue portions of the upcoming budget.
As for the Jericho School District, it will hold the first of its budget discussions at its Jan. 22 Board Meeting at Seaman Elementary School.
