Belleville Henderson looks for budget 'magic'

BELLEVILLE — The Belleville Henderson Central School District tax levy will rise, but by how much is a topic of debate as the Board of Education works on the 2010-11 budget it will present to voters in May.

At Monday night's board meeting, discussion focused on how to rein in the levy increase with the least possible harm to student education, teachers and programs.

The current budget draft calls for $8,360,074 in expenditures with a tax levy increase of 5.83 percent. Last year, the levy remained flat at $3,653,905.

Some board members want to limit the levy increase to 3 percent; they said the current figure of 5.83 percent is too high to present to taxpayers.

Superintendent Rick T. Moore said the board is looking at all options to moderate the increase.

"We're trying to get somewhere between the 3 and 4 percent range," he said. "We would like to get that number to below a 4, but to do that we're going to have to work some magic."

Deborah A. Vink, district business manager, said to make it to a 4 percent tax levy increase, the board needs to cut $66,972 from its current budget draft; to get to 3 percent it would have to cut an additional $36,539.

Board member Alice M. Draper suggested taking more money out of the fund balance.

Ms. Vink said the 2010-11 budget includes an appropriation of $650,000 from the fund balance. Last year, the district used $646,500.

"I'm not saying get ourselves down to the bone," Ms. Draper said. "I mean, we're talking about $37,000."

Board member Kevin P. O'Rourke agreed with the idea.

"I don't want to see us get in a situation where we need to cut staff," he said. "That's when the kids suffer."

So far, the draft budget calls for no cuts to staff positions or student programs. Mr. Moore said the board will do everything possible to prevent those types of cuts. He said some support staff members may retire, and if they do, the district will not fill the empty positions.

Ginger L. Cook, board vice president, said the district should not adopt a budget until it has gone over every aspect with a fine-toothed comb.

"We need to look at all our programs and see how we can be more efficient," she said.

The board will meet at 7 p.m. April 6 in the school library to further discuss and adopt a budget.