3.8-perecent tax hike
GCSD super proposes $82M budget



GUILDERLAND — As enrollment in Guilderland schools continues to gradually decline, the superintendent has proposed an $82.3 million district budget for next year, an increase of about $3.3 million, or 4 percent, over this year.

He estimates Guilderland residents would pay 3.81 percent more in taxes — or $19.65 per $1,000 of assessed value.
"I firmly believe the children are our community’s future," said Superintendent Gregory Aidala in presenting his spending plan last Thursday to volunteers on a citizens’ committee.

The 21 volunteers will review the proposal in five televised sessions over the course of the month. The school board is slated to adopt the budget on April 11 and voters will have their say on May 15.

The budget reflects the two priorities the school board set this year — to develop an enhanced technology program and to start teaching foreign language in the elementary schools.

Increased costs for math, science, and technology total $319,000. This includes a math-science enrichment teacher at the middle school and a 20-week technology course for sixth-graders. At the high school, it includes returning the Advanced Placement computer science course and the honors physiology course as well as introducing a digital photography course. It also includes sending a student to Tech Valley High School, upgrading fiber optics, and hiring a career and technology supervisor.

For the Foreign Language Early Start program, which the district has been considering for several years, the budget calls for hiring two Spanish teachers to teach kindergartners, and first- and second-graders at the district’s five elementary schools.

One of the budget’s more controversial moves may be combining the supervisors’ posts for English and social studies at the high school to save $72,000. The social-studies supervisor is retiring.

Last month, a committee made up of both social studies and English faculty adamantly opposed combining the posts. The committee proposed creating a writing center and phasing in a modified course load — so that English and social-studies teachers would, after three years, each teach 4.5 courses, rather than carrying the five-course load most other high-school teachers carry; this would allow them to focus on improving student writing. The budget proposal does not accommodate this plan.
Referring to Malcolm Gladwell’s book, The Tipping Point, Aidala said the district needs both program support and community trust. "It’s very important for us to maintain the trust and support of the community," he said, recognizing any tax increase causes "difficulties" for the community.

Revenues

The $82,305,000 budget proposal counts on about $21.7 million in state aid, about 26 percent of the total costs.

While the dollar amount of state aid to Guilderland has increased from six years ago, when it was $18.9 million, the percentage of the local budget it covers has declined steadily from about 31 percent.

The $21.7 million that Guilderland is planning for next year is based on the governor’s budget proposal, said Aidala.
"We hope that, if anything, it goes up by April 1," said Aidala, referring to the deadline for the state budget, which was met the last two years for the first time in decades. "Our worst fears are it would go down," said Aidala, adding this isn’t expected.
While Governor Eliot Spitzer has proposed increasing state aid to education by $1.4 billion, the "bad news," said Aidala, is that spending is targeted for New York City schools as a result of the Campaign for Fiscal Equity case.

The Guilderland budget proposal also calls for $1.125 million to be used from the fund balance, which is $125,000 more than was used this year.

The bulk of the revenue, about $57 million, is to come from property taxes. The projected Guilderland tax increase of 3.8 percent is based on the assumption that property assessments in the town of Guilderland will increase by $20 million. Guilderland makes up about 93 percent of the school district.

Small parts of three other towns lie within the Guilderland School District — Bethlehem makes up about 6 percent and Knox and New Scotland each make up less than 1 percent.

Bethlehem and New Scotland have both recently gone through townwide property revaluation; their state-set equalization rate this year was 100 percent. The estimated tax rate next year for Bethlehem residents in the Guilderland School District is $16.53 and for New Scotland is also $16.53.

Knox, which has not gone through townwide property revaluation recently, had an equalization rate of 65 percent this year. The estimated tax rate next year for Knox residents in the Guilderland School District is $25.43.

Assistant Superintendent for Business Neil Sanders went over a list of true value tax rate comparisons for local school districts this year. Ballston Spa topped the list at $20.97 per $1,000 of assessed value and Saratoga was at the bottom of the list at $10.93. Guilderland was in the lower half at $15.92, just below Voorheesville at $16.42 per $1,000 of assessed value.

Expenditures

Aidala went over three significant forces driving the $3.3 million budget increase. The largest was $1.97 million more, a 4.58-percent increase, for employees’ contractual salaries. Employee benefits are up 5.24 percent, or $841,041, and special-education programs and services are up 11.7 percent, or $438,265.

The district has 12 bargaining units, with an average contract length of three years, said Aidala.
During a question-and-answer period after the presentation, Mark Grimm, a member of the citizens’ budget committee who had introduced himself as Guilderland homeowner and business owner, said the district had to "get a handle" on raises for instructional staff.
Aidala responded that the contracts set the raises and said, "To reduce salary cost, you have to reduce staff."
Grimm disagreed, pointing out that the school board negotiates contracts and adding, "A lot of people are satisfied with two-and-a-half-percent raises."

Later in the meeting, Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources Susan Tangorre went over a chart showing how teachers’ salaries increase on a step system. A brand-new teacher at Step 1 with a bachelor’s degree but no experience earns $40,000 and, with benefits, costs the district $52,025.

A teacher with five years of experience, on Step 5, earns $45,000 and, with benefits, costs the district $67,744. A teacher with 23 years of experience on Step 23, earns $71,300 and, with benefits, costs the district $101,668.

The average teacher’s salary, said Tangorre, is $58,935.

Aidala displayed for the committee a triangle-shaped chart that listed, at its base, state-requirements and, on top, non-required expenditures supported by the school board such as social workers, psychologists, art and music programs, advanced high-school courses, enrichment programs, and half-day kindergarten.

Aidala pointed out that the $79 million budget for 2006-07 was approved by 56 percent of the voters.

Enrollment had declined by 126 students or 2.3 percent from the year before, he said. Enrollment is expected to decline by another 72 students next year, he said.

The district currently employs 1,074 workers for 5,425 students. There are 488 teachers, 555 support staff, and 31 administrators and supervisors, Aidala said.
"Education...is labor intensive," said Aidala. "Just below 75 percent of the budget is targeted for salaries and fringe-benefit costs."

The budget-drafters assumed health-insurance savings of $300,000 will be identified based on a projected premium increase of 12 percent.
The spending plan also assumes the rates for the Teachers’ Retirement System will increase from 8.6 to 8.7 percent. "In previous years, the increase has been far more dramatic," said Aidala. When the stock market was doing well, school districts paid a smaller share, but, after it faltered, their share went up.
"It gets a little scary when you see the stock market drop 400 points," said Aidala, adding there is a two-year lag on the effect on rates.

The budget also has embedded within it costs for the federal No Child Left Behind requirements totaling between $90,000 and $100,000.

The budget allows for continued small class sizes at the elementary-school level — 15 to 21 students for kindergarten, first-, and second-grade classes and 17 to 22 students for third-, fourth-, and fifth-grade classes.

The budget also calls for $16,250 for a summer early intervention program and $120,000 for two Spanish teachers to start teaching foreign language in the elementary schools.

At the middle school, where a decline of 76 students is anticipated, close to six teachers (One four-teacher team and teachers for special areas like art, music, and technology) will be cut, saving $348,000. An enrichment teacher for math and science is to be added at a cost of $60,000 and a full-time and a half-time teacher will be added for a 20-week technology course for sixth-graders, at a cost of $90,000.

At the high school, where enrollment is to increase by 25 students, teachers will be added in part-time posts for music, math, English, science, social studies, and physical education; a full-time foreign-language teacher and reading teacher will also be added. The total for 3.3 teachers will cost $258,000.

Also, a supervisor will be added for career and technology instruction, which amounts to six-tenths of a job for $45,000 since the other part of the job involves teaching and is already accounted for.
Aidala said these additions fill needs "separate from enrollment trends." Students have shown interest in those classes, he said, and the added reading teacher is to help struggling students before they "exit high school."