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Starpoint hears budget presentation outlining district finances, state-aid changes and transportation costs
Summary
School officials presented a third budget update that reviewed revised debt-service estimates, per-student technology allotments, transportation operations and an anticipated $523,000 increase in foundation aid under the governor's proposal.
The Starpoint Central School District received its third budget presentation of the season on Feb. 11, when a district staff member reviewed revised debt-service numbers, technology and transportation costs and early estimates of state aid under the governor’s executive proposal.
The presentation matters because it frames the spending plan voters will see at the district’s upcoming budget vote and identifies items that may require borrowing or reallocation, district officials said.
A staff member presenting the budget told trustees the district will move ahead with permanent financing next year following a bond anticipation note the district expects to repay in part with a required principal payment of about $60,000. The presenter said revised debt-service figures were available for the meeting and reflected an increase from earlier estimates.
Dr. Croft, the district superintendent, and the presenter discussed technology funding: New York State provides roughly $10.74 per student for hardware and about $14.98 per student for software, the presenter said. The budget also shows no change planned for the district website and messaging tools used for parent notifications.
Special-items and grant revenue were highlighted. The presenter credited Miss Brown Bridal, who handles title grants for the district, with bringing in about $444,000 in title funds this year. Community education programs continue to operate self-sufficiently, producing some additional revenue.
Transportation was a separate focus. The presenter said the district transports about 3,200 students daily using roughly 66 large buses, smaller buses and vans to 43 sites across a 15-square-mile district. The fleet covers nearly 4,000 miles per day; typical fuel economies mentioned were about 6 miles per gallon for large buses and about 15 miles per gallon for vans. The district is in the fourth year of a five-year contract with Student Transportation of America (STA). The presenter said the district is working with NYSERDA on an electric-bus study to evaluate transition costs and timing.
On state aid, the presenter summarized the governor’s executive budget as proposing a roughly 4.8% increase in statewide school aid and identified district-level effects: Starpoint’s preliminary share of foundation-aid increases is about $523,000, equal to roughly a 2.63% increase for the district. The presenter said formula changes — including replacing legacy free-and-reduced-lunch measures with newer economically disadvantaged counts and other adjustments reported from a Rockefeller study — are contributing to differences between the statewide increase and the district’s individual change.
Board members and the presenter noted some formula complexity and said staff will attend upcoming webinars and report back with more detail about how the foundation-aid change and changed poverty measures affect Starpoint’s allocation.
The presenter and Dr. Croft also answered questions about special education nursing contracts for Starpoint students placed in private programs outside the district and noted the budget includes approximately $100,000 a year for interpreting services for students with hearing needs.
Board members did not take a budget vote at the meeting; the presentation was described as an informational update as trustees continue planning ahead of the budget vote and school board election.
