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2010-2011 BUDGET DEVELOPMENT MESSAGE

New York State’s fiscal problems continue and the impact on funding for education means that school districts such as Cato-Meridian which rely heavily on state aid must brace themselves for significant aid reductions for the 2010-2011 school year.   In fact, the most favorable projections coming out of Albany at this time suggest that the best schools can hope for in state aid for the 2011-2012 school year is a freeze at the reduced level the Governor is proposing this year. 

In January, Governor Paterson faced some difficult choices in building his proposed state budget for next year.  As part of a plan to close a projected $7.4 billion state budget, the Governor’s budget proposes to cut School Aid by $1.1billion scaled back from this year’s level.  This translates to a 60% greater cut than he proposed last year.  Governor Paterson’s School Aid proposal works this way: fund aid categories according to the formulas now in law, and then apply a lump sum bottom-line cut for all school districts.  This is what is referred to as the Gap Elimination Adjustment.  This adjustment (GEA) is a complicated calculation, scaling cuts based upon district wealth and student poverty.

Next year, under the Governor’s Executive Budget, Cato-Meridian will receive an aid reduction (GEA) in the amount of $1,002,567.  This is a 5.89% reduction in total state aid from this year’s budget.  When we add on increases in retirement costs, health insurance and other contractual costs, the projected budget gap facing the district for next year is $1,689,130.  Needless to say, as with the Governor, we will have to face some very difficult choices as we prepare to assemble a budget for Board of Education adoption and voter approval. 

Even though there are many challenges ahead of us as we work to close the looming budget gap, we want to reassure residents that even in difficult financial times, Cato-Meridian can still deliver a high quality education and stay committed to our goal of preparing our graduates for college and to compete in a demanding and technologically sophisticated job market.

Over the next few months, we will post additional links to relevant data and information as a way to keep residents informed about our budget process and the forces and influences that impact its development.

Best regards,

W. Noel Patterson

Superintendent of Schools