of $150,000 home
will come to $30
Jackson trims 2 cents
off school tax increase
Savings to owner
of $150,000 home
will come to $30
BY JOYCE BLAY
Staff Writer
The Jackson Township Committee has unanimously approved a reduction in the amount of local property taxes that will be collected from residents and business owners to support the 2004-05 school year budget.
Taking action Monday, the committee certified a local tax levy of $46.57 million. That is down from the $47.63 million tax levy proposed by the Board of Education and defeated by residents in the April 20 school election. The tax levy during the 2003-04 school year was $44.1 million.
The budget for the 2004-05 school year will total $113 million. The budget for the 2003-04 school year was $108 million.
With the cuts made by the committee, a 9.9-cent tax increase proposed by the board will instead be trimmed to a 7.9-cent increase per $100 of assessed valuation. The school tax rate will rise from $1.947 to $2.026 per $100 of assessed valuation. The defeated budget proposed a new tax rate of $2.046 per $100.
What it all means is that the owner of a home assessed at $150,000 will see his school taxes rise from $2,920 to $3,039 in the coming year (instead of $3,069). The owner of a home assessed at $300,000 will see his school taxes rise from $5,841 to $6,078 in the coming year (instead of $6,138).
School budget consultant Frank Marlow of Huntington, N.Y., provided recommendations to reduce the budget for the second consecutive year. Based on his recommendations, the committee recommended that the district defer hiring the following personnel: two elementary school teachers, at a savings of $110,000; a high school nurse, which will save $55,000; and seven lunchroom aides, tagged at combined cost of $34,000.
Further recommended reductions were made in the following line items: $123,500 from educational supplies curriculum; $14,375 from teacher workshops/conferences/membership dues; $14,030 from curriculum summer work; and $707,598 in projected health benefit costs.
According to Mayor Sean Giblin, the savings were based on a recommendation by Marlow that the district use more of its surplus (savings) account, which he said would still remain within the state’s mandated limit.
"We did what we had to do," Giblin said.
Committeeman Josh Reilly, the only Republican on the governing body, questioned whether the district and other committee members had gone too far.
"I get concerned when I see cuts in line items like curriculum," Reilly said.
Superintendent of Schools Thomas Gialanella, who consulted with Marlow and committee members in order to reach an agreement on where the cuts should be made, said the line items affected would not detract from the district’s ability to provide a thorough and efficient education for students.
"(The budget) is a work in progress," Gialanella said. "The board will decide where cuts will come from."
New programs, such as the summer reading program, may instead be made on a modified or pilot basis, according to the superintendent.
"I would ask that you not touch the academic integrity of the programs," said Reilly.
The board, which was scheduled to meet Tuesday evening, will vote to accept the committee’s cuts or appeal them to the state Commissioner of Education. If the board members accept the committee’s reduction in the tax levy they can choose whether to make the cuts in the line items noted by the committee or anywhere else in the budget.
"We feel that the reduction is fair," said Martin Spielman, the board’s vice president, who spoke during the meeting’s public forum. "Our goal is to provide the best education to the children in our community at a cost our citizens can afford."