Without fanfare or representation of the teachers’ union, the Bayonne Board of Education passed its $119.6 million 2010-2011 school budget on March 2, which imposes no increase in taxes, said Bayonne School Business Administrator Leo Smith.
This budget would impose a $57.1 million tax levy – unchanged from last year, marking the third year in a row with no increase in the tax levy.
While the budget shows an overall increase of 3.8 percent over last year, or about $4.1 million, additional state aid and other revenue sources absorbed the increase.
Smith said the district was able to come up with additional revenue that helped offset increased costs, including the loss of $1 million in federal Title 1 funds; a $1.3 million increase in healthcare costs; a $750,000 contribution of employee pensions; and funds set aside for textbooks and equipment.
“We’ve learned when confronted with dire situations not to panic.” – Will Lawson
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Board Vice President Ava T. Mitchell asked Smith if the district would be purchasing new textbooks or renting them.
“We’re looking into both,” Smith said, saying that which ever option gives the best cost savings, the district will use it.
The district, to the board’s surprise, actually saw a $1.1 million increase in state aid this year.
The school board passed the budget after receiving the figures on school aid, and sent the budget to the Hudson County Superintendent of Schools for review.
“Getting the numbers from the state on aid put us in a very difficult position as far as a time frame,” said Board President Will Lawson.
While the board had expected to pass the budget at its last meeting on Feb. 24, the aid figures came out the same day, leaving the budget committee too little time to review them and report back. So a special meeting was set for March 2 in order to meet the time line for sending the report to the county, after which the Bayonne Board of School Estimate – which is made up of the board president and a board member, as well as the mayor and a member of the City Council – has two meetings to review the budget and receive public comment. A workshop for the Board of School Estimate is scheduled for March 23, to be followed by a regular meeting on March 28, at which time the Board of School Estimate will vote to approve the budget with possible recommendations for cuts.
The increase in state aid was a pleasant surprise, Lawson said.
“We anticipated worse than it was,” he said. “But we’ve learned when confronted with dire situations not to panic. We know this affects a lot of people.”
As good as the aid news sounds, Lawson said this comes after the governor cut more than $5 million in aid from the district last year.
“So we’re not anywhere close to being back to where we were,” he said.
The district will have to use its own money to make up for the loss of $1 million in Title 1 funds, which pay for the improving of academic achievement for the disadvantaged.
Smith said these are not from the basic accounts, but a cut in extra money the district received that has not been renewed by the federal government this year.
As proposed, this budget shows about a $500,000 increase in regular school programs; a $2.1 million increase in special education programs; a $300,000 increase in employee benefits; and a $200,000 increase in school maintenance. The budget also accounts for an increase in adult education, but a decrease in funds dedicated to charter schools. Funds for pre-school also decreased.
This budget also accounts for an estimated increase of full time student enrollment from 8,108 last year to 8,251 at the start of this year, as well as an increase in special education students from 1,210 to 1,251. Out of district placement of special education students declined slightly in this year’s budget.
The public can comment on this budget during both the workshop session of the Board of School Estimate on March 23 at 7 p.m. in the Anna J. Herbert meeting room at the Board of Education office on Avenue A, or at the regular meeting on March 28.
Al Sullivan may be reached at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com.