Mamaroneck Schools Superintendent Dr. Paul Fried unveiled his recommended budget on Tuesday, March 16. The bottom line is a 2010-2011 budget of $122,695,077, or $1,769,317 more than last year.
Editor’s Note: Check back Thursday for full details on the budget.
The recommended budget represents a 1.47% increase in dollars and would require a 1.42% increase in the tax levy, which translates into a 2.81% increase in the tax rate. This is a significant reduction from the last set of recommendations, which would have required a tax rate increase of 4.45%.
On a typical property assessed at $20K:
- The tax rate = $759.46 per $1000
- Annual cost to taxpayer before STAR = $14,722
- Increase: $414.94 per year; $34.58 per month
Dr. Fried’s budget recommends cutting 52.8 positions, including 11.6 teachers.
There were no additional reductions recommended since the last budget session. Increases are smaller than before because the district has been able to get better estimates of revenue and expenses.
This version of the budget restores two positions at the high school: a full-time English teacher and a part-time financial aid person ($35K).
Dear Dr. Fried…An increase of $1,769,317 more than last year representing a 2.81% increase in the tax rate is not acceptable. Keep sharpening your pencil, and get out those advanced calculator models to keep reducing your budget to zero increase. Have you noticed our economy, jobs losses, and loss of tax base? You can’t spend what you don’t have. Teach our children well and teach these basic economic principles. Perhaps our students can make suggestions to reduce the budget? I bet they can.
Here is what a leader does – i could also have contributed this to the Sr Oppenheimer propaganda page. http://nj.gov/governor/home/pdf/20100316_budget_remarks.pdf
Remarks of the NJ Governor presenting a budget with 9% down expenses.
At last a politician who has “tough love” which is in the interest of his constituents. I heard NJ Gov. Christie televised speech and was so impressed with him. He makes sense, although his audience looked like he was “stabbing them in their heart (or wallet).” You can’t spend what you do not have, and he blasted the teacher’s union for their bully tactics.
Zero is zero, not 2.81.
Are these new estimates a new example of the new math of the new curriculum.
Before the no-income-verification loans and sub-prime days, the way to balance a budget was not by manipulating both sides of the equation to yield the number you wanted people to believe.
Yes, Frug Al, zero is zero. And when the budget is spent, spending stops.
Memo to School District leadership: Learn to educate with the money the community can afford. Hear us roar, the acceptable tax increase is 0%, or less.
Facts are stubborn things, but statistics are more pliable. ~Author Unknown
A shrinking increase – gotta love it!
And a shirking leadership – priceless.
True leadership must be for the benefit of the followers, not the enrichment of the leaders. – Robert Townsend
They are getting closer , and should have started at this point in the request for an increase in funding. It was very interesting that there was actually a surplus last year that is rolled over into next years budget. It is set at approximately 4% of the budget. So if it is set at 2%, then in effect they would not have to raise taxes and fewer layoffs would have to occur.
The teachers should still make an effort to freeze their wages for two years for then the Board of Education and the Superintendent can move on from spending so much time on budgeting and concentrate on the schools. It is up to the teachers to determine if they want an increase in salaries while their co workers get fired. From the conversations from the community the 2.8% increase will have to be modified one more time. However they are getting much closer.
Iris has the best comment of all the bloggers.
Gov. Christie shows the way. If the tax increase is set at zero, they will find a way.
What is depressing in all this is that there is absolutely no discussion of what happens going forward. Next year we are going to be presented with another “crisis” because the main drivers of cost increases will still be there but there will not be any “easy” cuts (by that, I mean ones which don’t require a rethink or a union showdown).
There are some extra things such as outsourcing building services but after that…Interesting that the town and village govts have finally begun to look at de facto merger but the school district has said nothing about how overhead might be reduced with mergers.