Voters approve
2010-11 budget
Thank you for your support!
On Tuesday, May 18,
Middletown
City School District residents passed a $134 million proposed budget
for 2010-11. The budget represents a .52 percent increase over this
year’s spending plan, and will result in an estimated tax
levy increase of 6.91 percent. Residents also elected Andrew
Warren to the Board of Education.
Official budget vote results
Yes: 867
No: 593
Official election results
Lynne Perkins: 288
Andrew Warren: 1,564
Loss of state aid, rising
costs
District officials began developing next year’s budget under some tough
circumstances—the state budget proposal contains a $1.1 billion decrease in
state aid to schools for the 2010-11 school year. This represents a loss of
approximately $4.6 million in aid for Middletown.
The reduction in state aid, combined with continued rising costs, is resulting
in a considerable gap between expenses and revenues for school districts
statewide. To compensate for the gap, School Business Administrator
Elizabeth McKean says the district had no alternative but to implement $6.9
million in budget cuts, including staffing reductions.
“The state’s current fiscal climate has forced us
to make difficult choices and sacrifices,” said McKean. “The proposed budget
provides a balance between providing the best possible educational programs for
students and minimizing the tax impact for residents.”
Three part budget comparison
All public schools in
New York State are required to report appropriations in
three categories: administrative, program, and capital.
The following data shows how next year’s budget is
broken down under this formula.
Administrative Total=$13,527,918
The administrative budget includes: salaries and
benefits for all professional staff members. It also
includes: clerical staff, public information, curriculum
development and supervision, research, planning and
evaluation, legal services, and Board-related costs.
Program
Total=$98,724,494
The program budget includes: salaries and
benefits for all teachers, guidance counselors, aides,
psychologists, nurses, social workers, and speech
therapists. It also includes inservice training,
library costs, transportation, co-curricular programs,
and interscholastic athletics.
Capital
Total=$22,428,689
The capital budget includes: debt service on buildings,
bus purchases, operations and maintenance costs,
including salaries and benefits f or all custodial staff
members.
Budget
