SWR school board approves $68.6M budget, stays below tax levy cap
The Shoreham Wading River school board approved a $68.6 million budget plan for the 2015-16 school year at its meeting Tuesday night, school administrators confirmed.
The budget will keep the district below the allowable tax levy cap, according to Superintendent Steven Cohen. Presentations about the proposal stated that the budget will rely less on reserves and boost special education.
The approved budget differs slightly from the original plan submitted by Mr. Cohen. That’s because of a boost in state aid and new information about the state’s maximum tax levy, the total amount of tax money pulled in by the district, he said.
“The board decided to allocate the increase in state aid to dealing with the new APPR system that we’re going to have to implement,” he said.
While spending increased slightly thanks to the state aid money, the allowable tax levy increase dropped slightly to 1.35 percent after a revised limit was received from the state, he said.
The plan will now go to voters May 19 from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the high school. Since the budget remained under the allowable tax levy increase, the budget can pass with a simple majority.
