School budget comes into focus

With the annual school budget vote and elections of members of the board of education fast approaching on May 16, the Warwick Valley Central School District administration offered a detailed look at the budget items of greatest impact: namely, salaries and benefits; BOCES; technology; buildings and grounds; Special Education; and transportation, at a special meeting of the board on March 16.

The proposed budget for the 2023-24 school year is $109,140,179, up $7,410,940 from the current year. The district’s revenues are projected as $109,140,179, meaning there is neither a surplus nor a deficit.

The district also proposes the purchase of five school buses, at a maximum cost of $830,000, using a combination of a maximum of $330,000 from the capital bus reserve, and New York State aid to do so, awaiting further word from Albany concerning aid, as Gov. Kathy Hochul and the state legislature work to finalize a budget.

The current tax levy increase is 0.73 percent, below the maximum tax levy of 4.47 percent, according to Superintendent of Schools Dr. David Leach, who spelled out the cost drivers in the budget:

BOCES

BOCES is responsible for, among other things, testing; Special Education services; instructional services (for example, career technology, occupational education, Odyssey of the Mind, etc.); technology (including equipment, software, and Internet); transportation; central printing; business administration; among other functions. BOCES’ greatest cost, at $806,000, is administration. The Total cost of BOCES projected for 2023-24: $15,485,941 – an increase of $1,073,146.

Board member Bob Howe said that the BOCES brochure didn’t give more detailed information than has been given in the past - especially regarding staffing and enrollment.

“We can write a letter to BOCES to capture that information (concerning enrollment),”Leach said, adding that WV administration can generate some of that information in-house.

Technology

This category includes equipment, hardware and software used in the schools; BOCES technology; district communications, and general supplies. The largest share of this segment is $1,166,500, for BOCES technology.

The total for technology comes in at $2,122,382, or $174,500 over the current year.

Buildings and grounds

The district has budgeted $2,475,930 for the coming year to maintain and/or upgrade its facilities and infrastructure – a difference of $142,500 over the current year.

The administration has endeavored to keep a lid on costs by doing much of the construction and repair work in-house, by using staff, versus hiring outside contractors.

Among the projects already completed: the cosmetology room; lead-free faucets remodel; electrical for tech at the schools; Park Avenue playground; solar security; bus garage parking lot extension; remodeling the bathrooms at the high school; capital project demolition; turf management; water bottle filling stations; ceiling and flooring replacements; high school culinary.

The administration has budgeted $2,475,930 ( $142,500 over current) for buildings and grounds, which includes $100,000 in state aid.

Special Education

Among the costs associated with educating Special Needs children include: legal hearings; doctors and therapists; tuition to private schools; BOCES services and general supplies.

According to Megan McGourty, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction, 15 to 20 Special Education students are transported to Rockland County BOCES on multiple buses, sometimes on wheelchair buses. Occasionally, some of these students require aides, Holmes added.

Tim Holmes, Assistant Superintendent for Business, pointed out that Special Ed is “aidable through Excess Cost.”

He added though, that he is “nervous” about BOCES transportation, that it’s been “a disaster,” due to the cost of fuel, increases in the prices of buses, and the difficulty of hiring drivers since the pandemic.

Excess Costs for Special Education students is “very high,” particularly those students who are profoundly disabled. Children with exceptional physical and/or intellectual disabilities are often transported out-of-district to placements where they can be better served.

Holmes added that, at between $150,000 to $200,000 per Special Ed student, the costs are somewhat offset by aid, but the “budget takes a hit” on the expense side.

Total amount budgeted for Special Education in the 2023-24 budget: $11,980,500, or an increase of $990,000.

Transportation

The WV district has budgeted $1,248,067 for 2023-24 transportation costs, or a difference of $99,067.

Rising fuel prices are driving the cost increase, Holmes said.

New York State transportation aid of 61.7 percent will offset some of those costs.