BERNE — Thanks to a state aid figure that’s higher than it’s been in years, the increase in taxes for the Berne-Knox-Westerlo School District’s proposed budget is lower than it’s been in years.

If the $18.5 million budget is approved by voters on May 16, it will represent a 5.9-percent increase in total appropriations over last year, but only a 2.4-percent increase in the tax levy, the amount to be raised by taxes. Last year’s tax levy increase was 5 percent over the year before.
"I’m very pleased to have one of the lowest tax-levy increases in the area," said Superintendent Steven Schrade.

Schrade said he expects the tax-rate increase—the amount to be charged to individual taxpayers—will be lower than 2.4 percent. The district is waiting for the state to set equalization rates before determining the exact figures.

The school board unanimously adopted the plan at a meeting Monday. It’s now in the hands of the voters. Last year, a $17.5 million budget was voted down in May, partially because of Westerlo residents protesting the closing of the Westerlo Elementary School.

In June, a $50,000 slimmer version of the budget passed, 549 to 486. If a budget is voted down twice, a New York school district is forced into a state-set contingency budget cap.

For the past couple of years, the state has been stingy with increasing its aid to schools. Not so this year, at least for BKW. The legislature marked almost $7.6 million for the district, an increase of $757,000 over the 2005-06 budget.

Although the state legislature has passed New York’s budget, the governor has the power to veto.

When the district was planning the budget, Schrade told The Enterprise, it was counting on receiving a state-aid amount similar to previous years and anticipating a tax-levy increase of 4.5 to 5 percent.

Schrade noted a few other cost-saving measures in the proposed budget. Under a new contract signed last year, teachers partially contribute to their health insurance costs. The budget line for employee benefits, at $4.2 million, is about an 8 percent increase over last year.

To combat rising energy costs, maintenance supervisor Peter Shunney has installed better controls on the boilers, and is installing more efficient lighting fixtures, Schrade said.
"Although the cost per kilowatt hour is going up, we were actually able to mitigate that by using fewer kilowatt hours," Schrade said. "I will admit that the mild winter was helpful."
At BKW, Schrade said, "You won’t see that big increase in the energy budget that other schools have."

The budget for teachers’ salaries, $4.8 million, is about $200,000 higher than the 2005-06 budget. Part of it is for special education, Schrade said. The largest part of the increase, he said, is to hire a gym teacher.

To save money last year, the district didn’t hire a new physical education teacher after one retired.
"That only works for one year," Schrade said. To keep up with state physical education requirements, he said, another teacher is necessary.
The budget, Schrade said, "would bring the staff to full strength for the first time in five to six years in proportion to the current population."

While enrollment in the elementary school is dropping, Schrade said, the high school classes are the largest the district has had since he started working there over 16 years ago.

If the budget is approved, Schrade said, class size in kindergarten through second grade will be under 20, and for third through fifth grade, it will be under 22.

The budget also allows for the high school to add an advanced-placement chemistry class to complement its AP English, history, and calculus classes, Schrade said.

The $18.6 million budget proposal breaks down this way:

—$1,787,436 for general support, an increase of $25,118;

—$9,561,168 for instruction, an increase of $532,432;

—$1,741,413 for transportation, an increase of $75,143; and

—$5,481, 174 undistributed, an increase of $394,831.

The district expects $9,252,280 in income, not counting from property taxes. Besides state aid, that includes $760,000 from the fund balance, $90,000 less than last year, and $470,570 in aid from the Board of Cooperative Educational Services.