Webutuck school budget adopted

WEBUTUCK — The Webutuck Central School District’s 2011-12 budget, adopted by the district’s Board of Education April 18 for voter approval in May, represents just one of a number of small budget-to-budget increases passed by the board in recent years.During the past three years, Webutuck’s budget increased by 3.2 percent in 2009-10, decreased by 3.41 percent in 2010-11 and is proposed to increase 2.26 percent in 2011-12, if the budget passes.In fact, at roughly $20.23 million, Webutuck’s overall budget proposed for 2011-12 would be about $770,000 less than it was in 2009-10. But because of cuts to state aid and increases in costs, the tax levy has increased less than 7 percent in those years, board member Joe Matteo pointed out at the April 18 meeting, when the budget was adopted by the board by a vote of 4-0 (Trustees John Perotti, Joe Herald and Joanne Boyd were absent).Webutuck’s board and administration were considering making a number of cuts to programming and staff in efforts to bring the total budget down, but in a last-ditch attempt, the board reached out to the district’s two unions, representing the teaching and non-teaching staff, for salary concessions. In an agreement reached with the Webutuck Teacher’s Association on April 11, in exchange for a one-year contract step freeze, the board would not eliminate any programming or teaching positions that would affect WTA members, excluding positions being eliminated following retirement.An agreement has not yet been reached with the Civil Service Employee’s Association (CSEA), board President Dale Culver said at the meeting.“One agreement is in the works,” he said, adding that the board was “grateful that everyone was open to discussion and open to meet with the board.“I’d also like to thank everyone for understanding how difficult the fiscal realities have become for us,” he said.The board is looking to negotiate a similar salary concession from the CSEA; however, Culver explained that the adopted budget is the maximum the district would be authorized to spend next year. Therefore, any concessions that may or may not be reached with the union would not require the budget figure to change.Currently, the board is planning to eliminate two positions due to retirement and between three and three-and-a-half additional positions. The board would not specify whether those positions were held by CSEA members or if they would be reinstated if an arrangement was made with the CSEA, similar to the WTA’s concessions.During public comments, the board was questioned on whether salary concessions were being asked across the board, including administration. Culver said that recent administrative hires (Ken Sauer as 7-through-12 principal and Steven Schoonmaker as superintendent) knew their salaries would be frozen, at least in the short term, upon accepting their jobs, and that there were no pay increases for office staff.“We started talking about freezes two years ago,” Matteo said. “And we knew that we had to start with administration. We couldn’t have a valid discussion otherwise.”The budget passed for voter approval totals $20,227,770. Of that figure, $8,103,584 is anticipated revenue and the remaining $12,124,186 would have to be raised through taxes. The average tax levy is expected to increase by 1.98 percent.In addition to the budget, which is the first and primary proposal that district taxpayers will be asked to vote on, four other propositions will be on the voter ballot come May 17. Two separate proposals will ask for permission to borrow money to buy two school buses, but a third proposal would give the board authority to use funds previously designated for a new bus garage (which is no longer needed) to be used to purchase the buses. Culver said that if voters allow those funds to be reallocated, there would be no need to borrow for the buses and there would be no further taxpayer impact.Finally, the board is looking for permission to donate the currently unused Millerton Elementary School, in a similar fashion to how the Amenia Elementary School building was donated several years ago to Amenia for use as its Town Hall. Unlike the Amenia building, Webutuck does not yet have one particular municipality or organization in mind to take over building; the village of Millerton, town of North East, the North East Community Center and American Legion Post 178 have all been mentioned during discussions.Several Board of Education seats will also be up for re-election, including Vice President Joe Herald, Joe Matteo and Casey Swift. The deadline for petitions to run for those seats on the ballot has already passed; Herald, Matteo and Swift will not be running on the ballot again. Two residents have turned in petitions: Robert Trotta and Judy Moran. Moran has served on the board before; Trotta has run for a seat before but has not been elected. The third seat will be filled by the person with the highest number of write-in votes.