7/28/2019 SHEN Budget Flyer

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ShenendehowaCentral Schools

COMMITMENT TO EXCELLENCE 2013-14Budget Flyer

Budget preserves all programs and services

2013-14 budget has lowest tax impact in four years

Shens 2013-14 budget preserves current programs and services with some pro-

gram enhancements, represents the lowest tax impact in our years and is below

Shens maximum allowable tax levy limit.

Shen residents will vote on May 21 on a proposed $156.7 million budget whichcalls or a spending increase o 3.45 percent. The true value tax rate would increasean estimated 2.29 percent. This means that a property with a market value o$250,000 would see an increase o approximately $100 in the total tax bill.

To help oset $6.7 million in increased costs (health insurance, retirement

systems and contractual salaries), district ocials made $2.1 million in strategic

reductions.

Program enhancementsThe 2013-14 budget provides educational enhancements through restructuring

and a reallocation o resources. Enhancements include:

Classroom-basedmobiledevices(iPads,Chromebooks) Additionalpositions:highschoolinalgebra,healthandLanguagesother

thanEnglish-LOTE(forMandarinChinese);middleschoolinAcademicIn-

terventionServices(AIS)readingandmath,LOTE,healthandsocialstudies;

and elementary in English as a Second Language (ESL).

Enhancedsecuritywithbuzz-insystemsinstalledatthehighschool,middleschoolsanddistrictofce(alreadyexistattheelementary

schools), along with more video survellence and improved locking mechanisms or doors districtwide.

Budget is under the Tax Levy LimitShenendehowas maximum allowable tax levy limit is 5.9 percent. However, the proposed 2013-14 budget would increase the total tax

LEVY by 2.8 percent or $3,360,344 below what the tax levy limit law allows. This legislation was enacted last year and it applies to the tax levy,not to tax rates or individual tax bills. Because the proposed budget results in a tax levy below the maximum allowed, approval o the budgetrequires only a simple majority (more than 50%)

Managing cost increases with strategic reductionsThere are three major cost increases in the 2013-14 budget that together equal $6.7 million: health, dental and prescription drug costs,

state-mandated contributions to the employee and teacher retirement systems and c ontractual salaries. To oset this, school ofcials proposed

$2.1 million in cost-saving reductions or 2013-14.

Over the past several years, district ocials have made a concerted eort to reduce costs that are under their control. In act, the our-year

average increase in spending is 1.55 percent because o these eorts. Continued on page 2

2013-14 Budget VoteMay 21, 2013 7 a.m.-9 p.m Gowana Gym

Total budget: $ 156,763,079

Spending increase: 3.45%Total tax LEVY increase: 2.80%

Projected true value tax RATE increase: 2.29%

A property valued at $250,000 would see a

property tax bill increase of $100.

Bus Purchase PropositionPurchase 19 buses to replace aging buses

Total Cost: $1,817,740

Go to www.shenet.org for more information

7/28/2019 SHEN Budget Flyer

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Central Schools 2013-14 Budget FlyerShenendehowa

When/where is thevote?Tuesday, May 21, 2013

7 a.m. to 9 p.m.Gowana M.S. Gym

Who can vote?YouareeligibletovoteifyouareaU.S.citizen,18

years or older and have been a Shenendehowa district

resident or at least 30 days prior to the vote. No pre-

registration is required. Ocial personal identication

with photo is required. It is a crime to alsiy votes (i.e

voting twice, alse identication).

Cant get to the polls?Absenteeballotsmaybeusedbyanyresidentwho

will not be available to come to the campus to vote.

Theyareavailableatthedistrictofce,5ChelseaPlaceCliftonParkandmustbereturnedtothedistrictclerk

no later than 5 p.m. on May 21. By law, absentee ballo

are mailed to any resident who is disabled. I you are

disabled and did not receive one, please call the distric

clerks oce at 881-0623.

Directions to the pollsGowana Middle School is located on Shens main

campus. Enter the campus using the Route 146 en-

trance, bear let. Gowana is on the right.

Additional propositionsReplace aging buses

In an ongoing eort to keep Shens bus feet sae and

decrease maintenance costs, the district is asking reside

to consider a $1,817,740 proposition to purchase 19 bu

Afterthestatereimbursementof63percent,residentswould see a .159% percent tax rate increase (approxi-

mately a 3 cent increase per $1,000 o assessed value) t

would not take eect until 2014-15.

Board of Education Election

Three o the seven seats on the Board o Education ar

up or election. Each seat carries a three-year term.

Contingency Budget:

The Rules HaveChanged

With the new tax levy cap law in eect, the calculation

or a contingency budget has changed. I a district ails to

get voter approval twice, it must adopt a contingent budget

withNOINCREASEinthetaxlevy.Inotherwords,Shenen-dehowa would have to cut an additional $3 million rom

its proposed budget which translates to approximately 46

sta positions.

Other aspects o the contingency budget rules would

stay the same, meaning that all non-contingency expenses

must be removed. This includes: student supplies, com-

munity use o buildings and grounds, certain equipment

purchases and certain salary increases (typically non-

contractual increases).

State aidFor the rst time in our years, the district will see an

increase in state aid over the prior year but, as always, the

stateaidpuzzleiscomplicated.Therearethreefactors

toconsiderwhenanalyzingstateaid:foundationaid,

expenditure-drivenaidandtheGapEliminationAdjust -

ment(GEA). Shensfoundationaid,whichisthegeneralaidcat-

egory that supports programs and helps mitigate the

tax levy increase, has not increased or the past our

years but will increase slightly ($79,480) in 2013-14.

Shens expenditure-driven aid is increasing or someexpenditures but declining or others. With this aid, thedistrict is being reimbursed based on what was spent theprior year or transportation, building debt, BOCES andspecial education.

Theadditionalstateaidtoschoolsannouncedwith

the passage o the state budget has been earmarked

toreducetheamountoftheGapEliminationAdjust-

ment(GEA).Thiswasimposedondistrictsthreeyears

agotohelpthestatewithitsbudgetcrisis.Aportionof

these unds are being restored in 2013-14. For Shen,

thistranslatestotheGEAbeingreducedfromalossof

$6,758,633 to a loss o $5,018,522 in state aid. Since

theGEAreductionwasenactedfouryearsago,the

district has lost more than $23.6 million in state aid.

The 2013-14

budget is not

about dollars

and cents. It

is about what

programsand services

we want to

offer to our

students and

how effective

we want them

to be.

Superintendent

Dr. L. Oliver Robinson