BOE reviews numbers for 2019-20 budget

PINE PLAINS — With a month left until the adoption of next year’s budget, Pine Plains Assistant Superintendent for Business and Finance Michael Goldbeck took the Pine Plains Board of Education (BOE) through a summary of the expenditures and revenues included in the proposed 2019-20 budget at a meeting on Wednesday, March 20.

To date, Goldbeck reported that the current draft of next year’s total expenditure budget is $32,998,180, indicating an increase of $497,520 or 1.53 percent from the 2018-19 budget. 

Breaking the expenditure budget summary down by its administration, program and capital components, the administration component totaled $3,785,557 while the program component totaled $26,130,113 and the capital component came to $3,082,510. 

For next year’s tax levy limit calculation, Goldbeck said the allowable tax levy comes to $23,615,572, resulting in an allowable tax levy increase of 2.52 percent or $580,529.

Next year’s revenue estimate amounts to $32,998,180. Following a decrease of $212,830 or 2.74 percent from last year, the total state aid amount for next year comes to $7,555,973. Meanwhile, the appropriated fund balance amount of $781,435 indicates an increase of $94,821 or 14.4 percent from last year.

Among the questions that remain open for the 2019-20 school year, Goldbeck advised the board to consider the district’s special education needs as well as transportation costs, federal grants, the amount of state aid, fuel prices and usage and energy savings. In addition to the approval of the proposed 2019-20 budget, district voters will be asked to vote on the election of two BOE members, the purchase of three 35-passenger buses and the creation of a capital reserve.

A full budget presentation will be held in the Stissing Mountain Junior/Senior High School library at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 3. Revisions may be made to the budget until the BOE adopts the final version on Tuesday, April 23. A public hearing on the 2019-20 budget will be held on Wednesday, May 8, at 7 p.m. District voters will have a chance to vote on the budget and the three district propositions on Tuesday, May 21, at the junior/senior high school between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. 

With regard to the budget vote date, Pine Plains Superintendent of Schools Martin Handler reported that the district had two days to give back as a result of unused snow days on the school calendar. He suggested that the BOE use one of the two days for the budget vote. Without any students in the building, the board can address any security issues. 

Later in the meeting, the board unanimously approved the capital reserve fund and bus purchase propositions for the 2019-20 budget vote.