Following much discussion and debate, and after making cuts for the required contingency budget, the Levittown Board of Education has chosen to submit a budget for re-vote. The budget to be voted upon will be $200,000 less than the original budget which was defeated on May 18.

The new budget, which totals $99,453,314 will be put up to be voted upon by residents on July 14. On July 6, following the district's reorganizational meeting, there will be a public hearing about the new budget. Registration for the vote will take place on July 7.

The new budget total will bring the tax rate down from a $6.15 per 100 of assessed value increase to approximately a $5.92 per 100 increase.

If the budget does not pass on July 14, the school district will have to abide by the contingency budget that they adopted prior to adopting a new budget figure. The budget cannot be put up for a third vote.

The board adopted a contingency budget at the special meeting they held on Wednesday, June 2. Until a contingency budget was adopted, to hold the district over until a final budget, whether it be the contingency budget or new budget, was passed, the district could not begin ordering supplies for the new school year. The new school year officially begins on July 1, and the district needed to order supplies before that date.

Under the new state laws, the Levittown School District was required to adopt a contingency budget that reduced the original budget proposal by at least $601,000. In order to make this reduction, after much debate, the board chose to cut from the budget a list of services that have not yet been provided to residents. These are new items that were put in the budget this year. This list was termed by the administration as the last in, first out list. This list contained approximately 12 items such as one additional staff member, maintainers, a music inventory clerk, districtwide curriculum development, a computer assistant, an expansion of the summer school program, two new vocational education courses, a contingent position for the special education program, and others.

The idea of cutting these services they had already decided would be a benefit to students in the district visibly disturbed the board members. Board Trustee Paul Granger asked the administration, who made the recommendation for the cuts, how these reductions would affect preparing the students for the new Regents standards. Trustee Michael Moriarity stated that there were certain areas that were taking direct hits and suggested the board and administration look at items such as new classroom furniture instead. After further questions and comments by the board they unanimously made the decision to cut the new items rather than removing services that have already been provided to the district. It is this contingency budget, which is $601,000 less than the original $99,653,314 budget proposal, that will become the official budget for the district if the reduced budget does not pass. The tax rate for the contingency budget is $5.47.

If the new budget passes it will supersede the contingency budget. There was much discussion before the board made their decision to put up a new budget rather than resubmitting the same budget for a re-vote.

Granger stated that the district is at a critical crossroads with the new state mandates for education and recommended that they needed to pass the $6.15 budget in order to accomplish what was necessary.

Moriarity, while agreeing with Granger's statement about being at a critical crossroads, stated his belief that if the board put the same budget up for a re-vote it, "doesn't have a chance in hell of passing." He said that in that case the district would have just wasted thousands of dollars on the re-vote.

Board Secretary Ronald Kinberg agreed with both Granger's and Moriarity's statements about the need for the money to increase the standards and the doubt that the same budget would pass.

Board President Diane Shapiro, who has received a petition from at least one group, stated that she is convinced that people want a shot at a re-vote but said that she thinks it needs to be lowered and that they need to hear from the community.

Following the board's discussion, Superintendent Herman Sirois suggested to Moriarity that if he was unhappy with the resubmission of the same budget, as the administration had suggested, that he make a proposal to cut the budget by $200,000 from the capital revenue. He said this was not an ideal situation because the district needed capital but said that if more money came in when the state passed their budget they could put the $200,000 back into the budget and return the rest to the taxpayers.

The board and administration took a break following this suggestion and came back with a new proposal. Rather than take the $200,000 from capital revenue, administration proposed the board take three other items out of the budget which would add up to the same amount. Assistant Superintendent for Business Alan Groveman noted that two of the items administration was suggesting had already been cut in the contingency budget. The first item cut was two new vocational education classes that had very low enrollment. Those students could be tracked into previously established classes. The second item cut was the new summer school program. Groveman pointed out that since it was already cut in the contingency budget he would not have time to organize the program with students and staff if the new budget were passed anyway. The final item cut was $90,000 worth of furniture. Groveman suggested that if additional state aid money came in they immediately put back the $90,000 for furniture before any money is returned to the taxpayers.

It was these three items that added up to the $200,000 budget reduction that the board decided upon. It was approved 5-1, with only Moriarity voting against the proposal.