Archive: News

The good news is that this year's Lansing School starting budget gap is only $700,000.  In the past handful of years it was $3 million, resulting in years of cuts in employee positions including teachers, and other expenditures.  The bad news is that even the lower gap would raise taxes significantly by adding 6.54% to last year's tax rate.  That would mean exceeding the New York State tax levy cap, or suffering more cuts if other revenue can not be found.

But Lansing School Business Administrator Mary June King told the Board of Education Monday that she doesn't think it's going to come to that.  King said that as the budget development season progresses the numbers are likely to look better as information improves, expected revenues are likely to increase, and early March annualization of 2015 budget will allow better projections on fund balance.

"I'm feeling very positive about this scenario," King said.  "I'm not usually as relaxed this early in the process because we have usually been faced with a hit from the power plant, and we're not this year.  This is doable.  We can reach this $700,000, and enough can change that we might not need that much."

The PILOT (Payment In Lieu Of Taxes) agreement between the Cayuga Power Plant and Tompkins County values the plant at an all-time low, but it is not going lower this year.  That means that the impact of devaluing Lansing's biggest property tax payer, while significant, will not make things worse than they already are.

The biggest problem the district faces seems to be an assault on schools by Albany.  Local school officials say that Governor Andrew Cuomo's so-called education reforms unfairly target successful districts along with those that are not producing acceptable levels of student achievement.  And Lansing School Superintendent Chris Pettograsso says that monies withheld by the state and budget politics have created a lot of uncertainty for school districts trying to figure out how much money will be available to them.

"We have a lot of disagreement with the Governor," Pettograsso told school board members.  "With the budget being so unstable as far as funding, (Lansing School Business Administrator Mary June King) takes what we were given last year and moves from that point.  That's where we're stepping off from -- we're assuming we'll have the same amount of funding that we received in the 2014-15 school year."

But they don't know, and when you are required to fashion a budget it is better to have actual dollar figures than the Emperor's New Clothes.  What's worse, the chief State Assembly budget negotiator, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, stepped down last week after being arrested on federal charges that he accepted nearly $4 million in payoffs and kickbacks.

"As the Speaker of the Assembly he does a lot of the negotiating of the budget for the Assembly," Pettograsso says.  "We're worried that the process will be held up even longer because they haven't chosen his replacement.  It's a matter of timing."

Each year school officials start projecting the next year's budget by calculating what it would cost to keep all the district assets , including programs, employees, supplies, etc., the same as in the current year.  With rising costs, especially in employee benefits, the new number is always higher.  In the past handful of years officials have found themselves facing budget gaps of $3 million.  That's why this year's initial gap of $700,000 is relatively good news.

"Our budget to budget number is at 2.98% right now," King told the Board of Education Monday.  "The combined levy would be increasing by 7.28%.  And yes, you should be shocked.  That's a high number.  The tax rate would be increasing by 6.54% and the tax levy would be increasing by 7.59%.  In this scenario of we try to reap all those revenue needs through the property tax levy we would be going over the cap."

That's the bad news.  State calculations only allow a budget rise of 2.84%, a combined levy (property taxes and revenues from PILOT agreements) of 3.44%, a tax rate increase of 2.73% and a tax levy increase of 3.73%.  That means School officials will either have to find $700,000 in additional revenue, or in cuts.  

Pettograsso said that if state Gap Elimination Adjustment (GEA) money, dollars promised to New York school systems but withheld by Albany, was reinstated Lansing would not have a budget problem.

"When we look at our difference, it's still that $800,000 that we're owed for the GEA," she said.  "If that were fully restored it would make a huge difference in our budget.  Right now that will not be coming to us if the full reform agenda as-is not approved by legislators."

The good news is that it is still early in the budget process, and King says that the numbers are likely to get better before the final budget must be approved.  But she added the amount of state aid Lansing can count on is still uncertain.

The bottom line is that administrators and school board members have worked hard to keep below the mandated levy cap, and say they intend to do that again this year, even though that is a more complicated process this year.

King says that the member districts of TST BOCES, including Lansing and ITHACA school districts have joined together to prove that they are sharing enough services to collectively lower their budgets by 1%.  Although not all districts in the coalition may be at the 1% savings mark, King says the State will accept it for all participating districts.

Any of those districts that also keep their tax levy below the tax cap will qualify their taxpayers to receive a rebate check for the difference between this year's school tax and next year's.  This year the only major requirement was that districts stay below the cap.  As of this writing school taxpayers in Tompkins County have not yet received their rebates.

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