NY School Budget Votes : May 18th

The date for voting on school budgets and school board candidates is Tuesday, May 18th. In the past, when a budget was defeated the “austerity” or “contingency” budget that took effect still had a budget increase of about 4%. That’s because the law allows a Contingency Budget to have an increase of 120% of the rise in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) or 4%, whichever is lower. In the past this usually resulted in a 3 to 4% increase even when the budget was defeated. This year, for the first time in state history, because the CPI is actually negative, the Contingency Budget increase will either be zero or a slight decrease.

We hope our school boards understand that many people are suffering in these difficult times, and that our school teachers and administrators are paid quite well. In Port Washington, for example, half the teachers are paid more than $100,000. On top of this are very generous health, insurance, and pension benefits totaling another $30,000. According to LI Business News columnist Ray Keating, writing in the NY Post, New York tops the nation in per pupil teacher pay, exceeding the average by 81%. NY teacher benefits exceed the national average by 126%.

We sincerely hope our well paid teachers agree to freeze their pay during these times, and hopefully avoid the need for layoffs. Please vote on May 18th.