School Budget Process

1. School Budget Process Valley Central School District April 11, 2019

3. Public Education is federally mandated... In the US, Children are compelled to be in school from early childhood through their teen years Education is deemed a fundamental right and responsibility for each state to legislate and monitor.

5. By the numbers... • Educates 4,242 students (4/3/2019) • Employs nearly 900 people to do this • Care for 8 buildings and grounds • 700,000 square feet • 396 acres • Graduation Rate: • VC: 92% • OC : 86% • NYS: 80% Valley Central School District

8. Mandate: Required to be Fulfilled by Law “Unfunded “Mandates: No Funding to Fulfill the Mandate Each year, the New York State Legislature, the Governor, Board of Regents and/or the Federal Government adopt new mandates that school districts are required to follow. In almost every case, additional funding is necessary to fulfill these mandates. In most cases, the majority of funding is sustained at the local level. Therefore, the mandate is “unfunded” by those who require it. Although most are supported by the majority of the educational community, the fact is that each mandate requires a variety of administrative, clerical and financial resources to be fulfilled.

9. Automatic External Defibrillators (AEDs) • Character Education • Fingerprinting of potential employees • Learning Standards • Megan’s Law • Wick’s Law (Multiple contractors for building projects) • Academic Intervention • AIMS • Annual Professional Performance Review • Annual Program Report: Educationally Related Support Services • Attendance Plan • Attendance Report • Behavioral Intervention Plan • BOCES Report Card • Building Level School Safety Plan • Child Abuse Reporting in an Educational Setting • Compensatory Education • District Education Plan • Comprehensive Long-range Plan for Educational Facilities • Comprehensive Plan for Safety Education • Comprehensive Public School Safety Program • Corporal Punishment • Corrective Action Plan • District Intern Plan • District Plans • District-wide School Safety Plan • Early Grade Size District Plan • Education of Gifted and Talented Students Plan • ESSA • Five Year Capital Facilities Plan Functional Behavior Assessment • Incarcerated Students Plan • Individual Home Instruction Plan • Individualized Educational Plans • Instructional Computer Technology Plans • LEA for IDEA - Multiple Components • LEAP Reporting • Local Assistance Plan • Local Special Education Comprehensive System of Personnel Development • Mandated Testing and Scoring • No Child Left Behind - Multiple Components • Occupational Education Plan • Personnel Development Plan for Special Education • Pesticide Notification Requirements • Physical Education School District Plan • Policy of Educating Pupil with Limited English Proficiency • Professional Development Plan • Professional Development Plan Report • Professional Performance Annual Report • Professional Performance Review Plan • Public School Performance Report • Pupil Attendance and Record Keeping • Registry of all Students with Disabilities • School-based Shared Decision-making Plan • School Code of Conduct • School District Property • Tax Report Card • School District Report Card • School Emergency Management Plan • School Facility Report Card • School Policy on Procedures and Practices for Disabled Students • Set-Aside for Early Grade Intervention • Special Education Space Requirements Plan • STEP Reporting • Uniform Violent Incident Reporting System • Universal Pre-kindergarten Program Plan • AIDS Education • Audit Committee • Audit Policy • Building Condition Survey • Bus Driver Training for Special Education Students • Charter Schools Funding • Chapter 57 of Laws of 2007 • School Leadership Report Card and Student Progress Report Loan Instructional Computer Hardware to Non-Public Schools • Chapter 58 of the Laws of 2007 Required Student Body Mass Indexes • Chapter 111 of the Laws of 2007 Breast and Prostate Cancer Screening – Provides employees’ four hours time off from work. • Chapter 165 of the laws of 2006 Re-inspection of School Buildings - Fire Inspections • Chapter 281 of the Laws of 2007 AED Posting for Public Access to Machines • Chapter 578 of the Laws of 2007 Blood Donation - Allows employees’ three hours time off from work • Chapter 583 of the Laws of 2007 Impartial Hearing - Burden of proof shift from parent to school district. • Charter Schools Funding • Claims Auditor • District Data Manager • Early Intervention - RTI • Engineering Review of all Maintenance Projects Costing over $5,000 • English Language Learners • Financial Statement’s Accountant • Grades 3 - 8 Testing, Scoring, Analyzing and Mailings • Inclusion Training and Staffing • Instructional Support Teams • Internal Auditor • Mental Health Education K-12 • Mentor-Teacher Internship Program • Middle Level Education • Pandemic Plan • Parentally Placed Students Attending Non-public Schools • Pension Costs - Increase Costs for Employees’ Retirement System and Teachers’ Retirement System • Purchase of Student Calculators • Requirement for Teaching Assistants • Response to Intervention - Special Education Students • Revised Math Curriculum • Seatbelts on School-operated Van Vehicles • State Education Department (SED) Core Curriculum and Assessments Revised • Segregation of Duties - Purchasing Agents, Treasurer, District Clerk • State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) Review by School Districts • Staff Development for Teacher Assistants • Statewide Data Collection - Data Warehousing • Student Dental Health Certificates • 20 Additional State Performance Plan Indicators - Special Education Students • Uniform Voting Dates - 1st and 2nd Budget Votes • Wellness Committee • Wellness Policy

11. Federal Funding of Education TWO MAJOR AREAS: Title I: Education requirements for low socio-economic schools- Underfunded IDEA: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (this established Special Education) : Underfunded- Promised 40% of the funding (1976) but the average has been 17%

12. On average, in terms of dollars and cents, it generally costs about 3 times as much for to educate a child with special needs compared to regular education student.

14. State Funding of Education Foundation Aid - The State’s Formula for funding Education. By law, “full” funding was to be phased in by 2010-11. It has not been yet. Imagine what $6,789,354 would do in this year’s budget?

17. What is a PILOT? PAYMENT IN LIEU OF TAXES: Businesses are granted this in exchange for coming to an area by the IDA The School District has no vote on the IDA; and must abide by its decisions

19. PILOTS in Valley Central 2019/20 Sintered Metals Newburgh Bergy Realty Newburgh Cargex (Caleast) Newburgh LKD Realty Corp Newburgh New Adventures/Air Logistics Newburgh NELCO Newburgh NY Telephone Newburgh NYS Dept of Trans/Omnipoint Newburgh EJ Delmonte Newburgh Kadge, LLC Montgomery Polich Tallix Montgomery Spruce Properties LLC Montgomery Bruderhof Community Montgomery HH FCU Montgomery Goodwill Properties Montgomery Montgomery Manor Housing Montgomery Montgomery Senior Housing Montgomery United Natural Foods/UNFI Montgomery Evergreens Senior Housing Montgomery Carlisle construction Hamptonburgh Black Hawk Hamptonburgh

22. ADD this Result of last year’s levy times 2% Was in tax roll and has been removed Sum of above

24. Understanding the tax cap... Tax Cap has helped stabilize school budget adoption since first enacted in 2012 98% of NYS School budgets passed in 2018 (The School Budget vote is mandated. The District must pay for it. Our vote costs $15,000)

25. Understanding the tax cap... The formula is not generous; it was specifically designed to limit the amount of local funds that can be raised It is CPI or 2%: whichever is LESS- in times of economic growth -it is still limited. The CPI this year was 2.44% but we were limited to 2%

26. VC Tax Levies for 8 years = 2.59 % average VC 2019-2020 Tax Levy at the tax levy threshold limit: 1.05% (Beds day

27. Understanding the tax cap... Taxes NOT raised one year do not “carry-over” The increase is based on the actual levy passed. If you go under the levy, you undercut the future levies as well.

28. Understanding the tax cap... Important to establish a base for future years when State Aid may be restricted or other costs rise based on the rate of inflation The entire State lived through GAP Elimination when a portion of Foundation Aid was taken back for five years. This was legislated in and legislated out. We cannot assume that an increase in State Aid is a given.

29. Understanding the tax cap... Helps avert a structural deficit created by reliance on use of fund balance & reserves and may help avoid asking for a supermajority override of the tax cap (60%) Fund Balance is meant to be used for one time emergencies. Relying on it to fill budget gaps, puts the fiscal integrity of the District at risk. At this time the District depends on $2.4M from Fund Balance as Revenue and $1M from other Reserves as Revenue.

31. Building a budget : District Goals • Increase student achievement 2. Attract and retain a knowledgeable and dedicated staff 3. Serve as the cornerstone of the community 4. Maintain and improve facilities to support goals 1 – 3

33. Enhance School Security & Preserve Facilities Enhance Instruction through Technology & Maintain Network Infrastructure Implement Cost Savings and Efficiency Measures Identifying Budget Goals Comply with Tax Levy Cap Support New Educational Initiatives *Adhere to State/Federal Mandates Maintain Educational Programs & Class Size Guidelines

35. Building a Budget: Revenue must equal Expenses

37. The 2019-2020 Budget Maintains our established Programs with Minor Enhancements • Continue implementation of new K-12 social studies curricula • Elementary STEAM Labs and Makerspaces • Additional HS STEAM Electives • Mental Health Programs: Yale Ruler Check and Connect ADAC • Expand upon our 1:1 Mobile Plan (Chromebooks) • Reinstate strength training coaching stipend • Assistant girls varsity lacrosse coach

39. Where the Budget Dollars Go

41. SIMPLY PUT

43. Senior Citizen Exemption • After a public hearing held by the Valley Central School District Board of Education on Monday February 25,2019, the BOE acted to increase the current Senior Citizen Tax Exemption qualifying income range. • The Exemption is now based on the income range seen in the table below, with the percent reduction applied based on that range. • The income range had not been increased at Valley Central since 1995. • This Senior Citizen Tax Exemption is now in line with the majority of Orange County’s school districts. • To qualify for this, a qualified residential property owner must be “at least over 65 years of age”.

45. Finding ways to get things done Improvement of the HS Auditorium Lighting The need: The lighting and Sound date back to the 1960’s- once improved nearly 40 years ago By using a TRANSFER to CAPITAL- can do this project with NO TAX IMPACT and receiving Building Aid for the money spent Enhancing Security A radio security system that will allow emergency communication with first responders- saving time through direct communication- being funded through a GRANT Other security enhancements are awaiting state release of the Smart Bond funding Both Improvements will be have NO TAX IMPACT!

47. Capital Reserve Fund PROPOSITION: To Create a CAPITAL RESERVE that may be funded up to $10M. • Gives a place to put excess money at the end of a fiscal year. • Board can put into the fund, • Voters must approve expenditure A Capital Reserve Fund is like a Fund for a Rainy Day when buildings need attention. The youngest building in the District is Berea--it celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2019-2020 Establishing it will establish an empty fund - it will be filled in the future by the BOE as they are able to .

49. How does this budget compare to other OC School Districts At Valley Central: Tax Levy- • Complies with Tax Cap law • is less than the average tax levy of last 8 years • Is less of a ncrease than last year • Will give us the maximum benefit in future budgets No cuts to any program Looks to repurpose some positions Any addition has direct student impact It does depend on fund balance which is a risk to our future fiscal stability IN Orange County: There are districts struggling with budget gaps There are districts becoming dependant on fund balance There are districts which must pierce the cap because they repeatedly imposed tax levies under the cap There are districts that have depleted fund balance There are districts which will have to make cuts to program

50. Budget Vote Tuesday, May 21, 2019 6 am - 9 pm Valley Central High School