Shelter Island School Superintendent: State aid hike likely

Optimistically predicting the chances of a restoration in state aid to the Shelter Island School District, Superintendent Brian Doelger, Ed.D., said Monday night he’s not recommending any immediate cuts to the spending plan for the 2024-25 school year.

The district has said all along that Albany legislators were lobbying strongly for a change in Gov. Kathy Hochul’s (D) budget that would at least restore the $170,000 cut in the executive’s budget draft.

Monday night, Mr. Doelger was more convinced Shelter Island will see restoration of that money since the state is now on course to take in more revenue than originally projected, he said.

His optimism was matched with late night word out of Albany that state legislators had completed their work on a budget revision and were ready to negotiate with the governor.

With word that state revenues were expected to be $1.3 billion more than had been anticipated, it was expected the governor would be amenable to restoring cuts she had made in education spending.

At the same time, the governor was dubious about making the April 1 deadline to secure a final budget. That would be the day after Easter Sunday.

Meanwhile, the district is holding to a $13.08 million spending proposal, up from this year’s current budget of $12.44 million.

Restoration of the $170,000 in the governor’s original draft would leave a short gap between what’s in the spending plan and what it will take to avoid going above the state-imposed 2% tax cap.

Although Mr. Doelger said Monday night the budget could actually be solidified by the April 1 deadline, he had secured agreement from the Board of Education to change the April 8 day on which the district had been expected to adopt the budget proposal they would submit to voters on May 21.

The Board of Education agreed to move that decision one week later, with a planned adoption now set for April 15.

“I think it’s prudent to wait,” Mr. Doelger said about making any cuts in spending Monday night.

Mr. Doelger said the adoption by the Board of Education of a budget plan could actually wait until later in April if the state decision gets delayed.

If the news about this year’s ability to stay within the tax cap is positive, Mr. Doelger had a warning for the future. The district’s appropriated fund balance — money allocated in one year but unused which can be applied to offset spending in the next year — has been shrinking since 2018.

But with rising costs in areas over which the district has no control — including health insurance premiums, energy costs, contractual agreements — it is becoming increasingly difficult to avoid piercing the tax cap, Mr. Doelger said.

Fast forward a year, and the district could be struggling to maintain its educational programs and stay within the 2% tax cap.