Westbury voters got a final look at—and a chance to ask questions about—their district’s budget on Tuesday night.
The district’s $201.3 million budget proposal, which was adopted by the board on April 8, is 2.4 million, or 1.22% more than last year’s $198,918,211. The budget is an outlier in Nassau: It includes a 0% tax levy increase, meaning community members won’t see a school tax increase on their tax bill like residents of nearly all other districts in the county will.
Tahira DuPree Chase, the district’s superintendent, asked for community members’ support of the budget, emphasizing that it allows the district to educate its students comprehensively.
The median taxpayer in the district pays $9,471.29 annually, or $789.27 monthly, in school taxes, and has, for the past two years, as the district has had a tax freeze, board President Robert Troiano said. According to calculations by Schneps Media LI, Westbury schools spend $44,485.52 per student.
Chase said Westbury has spent the last few years decreasing or freezing its tax levy since winning a lawsuit against the state, which increased its foundation aid. The district expects $99 million in state aid and $16.8 million of appropriated reserves to fund the majority of its budget.
Roughly half a dozen community members approached the board with questions Tuesday evening, ranging from suggestions on purchasing additional security vehicles, which Chase said she was already looking into to inquiring as to why the district budgets for overtime pay and why the line-by-line budget states that only Powells Lane and Dryden Avenue schools were listed as receiving funds for academic enhancement.
Chase said other schools will be receiving additional special education students and the funds provide for their staff.
The majority, or 65.8%, of the budget goes to the salaries and benefits for the district’s teachers and other staff. It provides for the continuation of all of Westbury’s current academic and extracurricular programs, as well as pays for the expansion the district’s social-emotional curriculum, summer school courses, expanding special education programs, Saturday school program, out-of-district experiences, like field trips, expanding athletic offerings, including a varsity boys volleyball team and tennis and golf teams and safety and security enhancements.
The district also plans to spend $1,445,000 on over a dozen facility improvement projects, including band room renovations and septic repair in the high school, home economics and technology room repairs in the middle school, floor and ceiling repairs in Drexel Avenue School and Powells Lane Elementary School and a new playground at Park Avenue Elementary School.
Under the budget, residents will see a question on proposition two, where the district asks for their permission to transfer $8.4 million from the capital reserve fund to finance the construction, reconstruction, and renovation of school district buildings and facilities.
Robert Stein, the district’s assistant superintendent of business operations, said the proposition’s language was intentionally vague to allow the district to use these funds over the next few years on any necessary building improvements.
He said all potential projects for which the money may be used will be presented at board meetings before being given the green light.
Residents can vote on the budget and Proposition 2 on May 20. On that ballot, they’ll also have the opportunity to vote in the school board trustee election, where incumbents Troiano and Vice President Floyd Ewing are uncontested alongside new candidate Mateo Flores, who is also running unopposed for a seat that current Trustee Pedro Quintanilla holds but will be leaving at the end of this term.
Voters can cast their ballots from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the Westbury Middle School, Park Avenue School, Dryden Street School and Drexel Avenue Elementary School.
