Local school budgets maintain programming

SOUTH COUNTRY

Voters in the South Country School District will decide whether to approve a budget of just over $143 million for the 2024-2025 fiscal year, an increase of 1.54 percent from the current $140.8 million budget.

The proposed budget maintains existing class sizes and academic and extracurricular programs, including music and art and more than 60 interscholastic sports teams.

The proposed tax levy increase, which was approved by the board of education on April 17, would be 2.7 percent. It is within the district’s state cap.

The proposed operating budget would transfer $1 million to the capital budget to be used for, among other things, replacing elementary school playground equipment, renovating the fitness centers at the high school and middle school and replacing the fuel tanks at Brookhaven Elementary School and South Haven Pre-K center.

In addition to voting on the budget, South Country District voters will also vote on the following: Electing two members to the school board; spending no more than $937,000 from district reserves to renovate the high school auditorium, including replacing the seating, flooring and carpets and upgrading the sound and lighting system; and changing high school bus routes to expand service to students living more than 1 mile from the school, which would make it available to more than 80 additional students. Currently, students need to live at least 1.5 miles from the high school to receive bus service. The expansion won’t result in any additional cost, Santana said.

The budget vote is May 21 from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Bellport Middle School. A public hearing on the budget will be held on May 8 at 6:15 p.m. at the District Administration Building, 189 N. Dunton Avenue.

PATCHOGUE-MEDFORD

The Patchogue-Medford School District is proposing a $241.3 million 2024/25 budget with a 2.67 percent increase. The budget does not pierce the tax cap. The average tax increase per household assessed at $2,800 estimates to $232.90 per year or $19.4 per month.

The district is also proposing the purchase of new univents with heating and cooling capacity districtwide. The proposition will be presented to the voters to authorize a $85,375,000 bond referendum to be paid over 15 years with an estimated 4.5 percent interest rate.

The estimated annual impact on the taxpayer in the first year that the new bond payments would overlap with current bond payments would be approximately $75 for the average home assessed at $2,800. State aid is expected to cover 73 percent of the total cost of the bond. 

Additionally, the district’s current debt is expected to fall off by 2028/29, and after this bond overlaps in 2026/27 and 2027/2028 it will essentially cost less to the taxpayers than the existing debt by essentially replacing it.

The bond will include several additional upgrades including a new multi-purpose turf athletic field, located just west of the existing high school stadium, as well as additional athletic field improvements such as adding technology, a jumbotron, and digital scoreboards and updating the press box, which is currently over 15 years old. The proposition will also allow for the purchase of new audio and visual technology for the music and fine arts department.

The vote for the budget, bond and BOE candidates will take place on Tuesday, May 21.

WILLIAM FLOYD

The William Floyd Board of Education adopted its proposed budget for the 2024-25 school year, which calls for a slight increase of less than one percent. The increase estimates to a yearly increase of $92 (0.25 cents per day) for the averaged assessed home in the community.

In addition to the budget, there are two propositions on the ballot: the creation of both the capital reserve and repair reserve funds to address facilities needs and upgrades without asking for additional funds from residents.

The annual budget hearing will be held on Tuesday, May 14 at 6:30 p.m. and the vote will be held on Tuesday, May 21, from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the William Floyd High School east lobby.