May 22, 2012 – The Stillwater Board of Education unanimously adopted a revised budget of $21,106,661 for the 2012-13 school year at its meeting on May 22.
The revised budget proposal is $135,077 less than the original proposal, and decreases spending over the current year by $200,710 or 0.94 percent.
Residents will vote on the revised budget proposal on Tuesday, June 19, the date set statewide for school budget revotes. Polls will be open from 12 noon to 9 p.m. in the middle school gymnasium (this location is where the budget vote has been held in years past).
Although 56 percent of voters approved the budget on May 15, a 60 percent approval rate was needed for passage, per New York’s new tax levy cap law.
If voters approve the revised spending plan, the tax levy—the total amount of money a school district can raise through property taxes—would increase by 1.49 percent. As with the defeated budget proposal, this proposed tax levy increase exceeds the district’s allowable tax levy limit and will need 60 percent voter approval to pass. Because of the impact the GlobalFoundries PILOT payment has on Stillwater’s tax levy limit, any increase over the current tax levy would require a supermajority vote (60 percent).
The district will use $123,000 that it saved from refinancing the capital bond project passed in 2000. This savings was realized after the first budget proposal was adopted. The revised proposal also includes using $11,020 of field trip overage money that is set aside for additional field trips each year.
More budget details will be posted on the district website over the next couple of weeks, and will be included in a newsletter set to hit mailboxes in early June. Residents are also encouraged to attend the public hearing on Tuesday, June 5, at 6:30 p.m. in the MS cafeteria.
Stillwater residents are eligible to vote on June 19 if they voted within the last three years in the general election.
