Voters on Tuesday will determine whether to adopt the Roslyn School District’s $102.7 million budget for the 2014-15 school year, a $41.3 million capital bond, re-elect board of education trustees Meryl Waxman Ben-Levy and Clifford Saffron and adopt the Bryant Library’s $4.9 million budget.
Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. at each of the district’s five schools.
School officials have said the budget, which reflects a .65 percent spending increase from 2013-14 and a .64 percent increase to its tax levy, was constructed based on actual expenditure totals from the last few years and does not require the reduction of programs, teachers or athletics.
Joseph Dragone, the district’s assistant superintendent for business, has said the district is anticipating $9.1 million in non-property tax revenue, which includes state aid, payments-in-lieu of taxes negotiated by the Nassau County Industrial Development Agency and its adult and special education programs.
Approximately $93.6 million will be raised in property taxes, Dragone said.
Dragone has said the district projects a $346,804 increase in revenues through payments in lieu of taxes, a $300,000 increase in special and alternative education program tuition and a $50,000 increase in adult education. The district’s largest source of revenue not coming from property taxes, state aid, will be $4,351,877 – an increase of $18,718 from 2013-14.
Approximately 80 percent of the budget will cover the salaries and benefits of the district’s teachers and employees, figures Superintendent of Schools Dan Brenner has said increases nearly every year.
Professional salaries account for 42.6 percent of the budget, Brenner has said. Benefits make up 27.8 percent. Support staff salaries comprise 11.8 percent.
Contributions to the state’s teacher’s retirement system increased $891,187 from what had been budgeted for last year, representative of a 12.7 percent increase, officials have said.
But employee retirement contributions have decreased by $156,666 from last year, officials said. Employee health benefits have decreased by $712,171.
Though the budget did not call for the reduction of teachers, officials said declining enrollment from the 3,300 students attending Roslyn schools and unforeseen retirements would likely impact the district’s staffing.
Officials have said the district plans to add a section of first grade at Heights Elementary School and sections of fourth and fifth grade at East Hills Elementary School. But officials are also planning for the elimination of second and third grade sections at Harbor Hill and East Hills elementary schools and for reduced enrollment at Roslyn’s middle and high schools.
In the next year, the district plans to continue its rollout of Roslyn’s iPad initiative, recycling the tablets used by its high school seniors to stock labs that would be used by its elementary-level students and faculty.
Roslyn will also look to make major security upgrades by installing exterior cameras and panic buttons and the Apple TV program in classrooms throughout the district, officials said.
The district has also allocated approximately $750,000 for capital improvements. The board budgeted $750,000 last year that was put toward the high school field house, paving and other curbing and fencing projects throughout the district.
The district plans to fund several renovation projects to each of its five schools through a $41.3 million capital bond, its first since 2000.
Projects include the deconstruction of Roslyn High School’s bus garage, air conditioning, increased security, a new library at Heights Elementary School, hallway and classroom lighting upgrades, road repaving, additional gym space and reconstructed front entrances at several schools.
Trustees have said the bond would not cause the district to undertake new debt, as it would replace old debt that would mature by the 2015-16 school year.
Brenner has equated the capital bond to taking on “a new home equity loan” and that the district should go out for bond now while interest rates are low.
The district has appropriated approximately $2.625 million in excess budgetary funds and a $1.8 million energy performance contract that would cut project costs and the bond figure that Roslyn taxpayers would fund.
Though Brenner has called the estimated $21 million in interest on the plan “a staggering number,” he has said 75 percent of the projects are eligible to receive state aid. By the district’s calculations, it would receive $3.7 million in state aid over 15 years.
Brenner has said that if tax rates remained constant, Roslyn taxpayers whose homes are valued at $644,000 would pay an additional $20 on their school tax bill in 2015-16.
As a result of the new loan, Brenner said the average school tax bill would $85 higher, but it would be $6 less per year by 2025 when the district will have paid off all debt accumulated prior to the issuance of the bond.
By 2031-32, after state aid is fully exhausted, Brenner said tax bills will be $8 higher, but by 2036-37 the district is expected to have paid off the capital bond and rates would go back to their 2013-14 levels.
Dragone said Roslyn plans to take out a $10 million serial bond anticipation note and quickly repay the interest, utilizing $200,000 from its debt service.
In each year through 2021-22, the district will utilize $1.5 million from its $9.2 million debt service reserve fund. After 2021-22, the district will retire an additional $1,784,000 in long-term debt,
Ben-Levy, the board’s president, and Saffron, its vice president, have each served three full terms on the board.
Prior to the 2009-10 school year, Ben-Levy and Saffron were appointed to their current positions on the board.
Bryant Library trustees intend to exceed the state’s tax cap with a 2.2 percent increase to its tax levy.
The library plans to collect $4,784,070 in taxes and project $144,100 in outside revenues, with $13,200 coming from library system grants and state aid.
Trustees have said that employee salaries, retirement contributions and health and dental insurance of the library’s employees accounted for the bulk of the $32,961 rise in spending from 2013-14.
