Because the budget pierces the tax cap imposed by New York State, the district needs 60 percent voter approval or it will be forced into a second vote that could be on the same or a revised budget.
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The budget will now go before the Shelby County Commission, where the district will ask the Shelby County Commission for tens of millions in extra funding to cover costs.
Monday’s vote comes two weeks after Richmond Schools Superintendent Dr. Dana Bedden said schools could still close after the budget increase was reached.
Also, the addition of planned school closures would cut costs.
A Board of Education meeting will be held on Monday night May 16th.
Voters in NY head to the polls Tuesday to decide whether to approve their school districts’ 2016-2017 budget proposals.
FOX13 learned last week the new proposal saves popular school programs such as CLUE and Eye-Zone.
Carver and Northside have both been proposed for closing before.
The West Islip Board of Education is proposing a $120.5 million budget for 2016-17.
But Hopson argued again this year – two school years later – that what was once a large student population in a large school building has shrunk to under 300 students.
The School Board still has some hard decisions to make to close the budget gap. Monday’s scheduled votes were the last action needed, following the first vote in April and several community meetings on each school.
If the budget passes, the district projects an increase of $17.24 per $100,000 of assessed property valuation.
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Last week, SCS told board members they ought to request $35 million from the county, because “the district retains only $0.78 for every additional dollar received from the county”. The savings to the school system from closing Carver and Northside would have been just over $1 million combined.
