Pine Plains school board proposes new budget

PINE PLAINS — The Pine Plains School District revisited the 2011-12 school budget, which was rejected by voters the first time around, during the Board of Education (BOE) meeting on Wednesday, June 1.The BOE decided to revisit the budget instead of going straight to the contingency budget so that it would have more freedom to select where to make necessary cuts. Contingency budgets have more state mandates than normal budgets.The new proposed budget is for $27,701,705, with an estimated tax levy of 3.38 percent. That is a reduction of $241,440 from the failed budget.The originally proposed budget, which failed to pass during the May 17 vote, was for $27.94 million and had an estimated tax levy of 4.61 percent. Had it passed, it would have been an increase of 3.996 percent over the previous year’s budget.The revised proposed budget would be a 3.098 percent increase over the 2010-11 budget. The contingency budget would be a 2.731 percent increase.The revised proposed budget is roughly $200,000 more than the contingency budget.When deciding where to make cuts, the BOE paid particular attention to what kind of impact the cuts would have and tried to minimize any negative impact on the students and the quality of instruction. Board members also rejected cuts that would result in layoffs and eliminate some extracurricular activities, activity buses and athletic programs.For the revisited budget, the BOE decided to make cuts in a variety of areas.The biggest reduction was in the transfer of funds to the capital reserve. That amount was reduced by $75,000, which leaves a $25,000 transfer. This money covers repairs to the district’s buildings.The second biggest cut, $58,000, was in equipment purchases. Equipment purchases could include items like lawn mowers, but it might also include materials and supplies like computers.A total of $53,000 net savings will be gained from the athletic director/physical education/health restructuring, which will end the interim athletic director position. The district has decided instead to promote from within during this restructuring.The rest of the cuts are from reductions in all of the district’s buildings and departments, reductions in the computer-assisted instruction budget and the restructuring that combines the boys and girls golf teams.