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Clymer Again Proposes Tax Levy Increase

The Clymer Central School District will again be taking a school budget to voters that features a 13 percent tax levy increase. The district proposed a similar budget last year that was voted down by the community. P-J photo by Jordan W. Patterson

CLYMER — Thirteen percent is again the number the Clymer School Board of Education proposed to increase the tax levy for a consecutive year. In the words of Superintendent Ed Bailey, he said bluntly, “We need it.”

Approved on Monday by the board, the Clymer Central School District will again need a 60 percent super-majority voter approval in order to enact the proposed budget of $11,495,924 for the 2019-2020 school year. The spending plan is actually a decrease from the 2018-19 school budget that totaled $11,561,554.

“We need the 13 percent to gain financial stability in our district,” Bailey said. “I think that we’ve done a good job as being as efficient as possible running everything as efficient as we possibly can. We need stability. We’ve been operating in an area that hasn’t been comfortable for the last couple years.”

The tax levy totals $4,853,194, a $569,362 increase from the 2018-19 school budget.

Bailey said the district estimates the increase will equate to a $1.82 increase in the tax rate. The tax rate is not set by the school district.

Bailey, the board and Business Manager Louann Bahgat believe the tax levy increase, if approved by voters, can help build a stable fund balance going forward.

During a budget work session prior to Monday’s regular meeting, the board agreed that if it approved a 13 percent increase it would not approve a tax levy increase above next year’s tax cap.

“It’s a one-time deal,” said Ed Mulkearn, board vice president.

Prior to approving the budget, Bailey recommended to the board that if the school budget proposal fails — as a similar one did last year — that the board propose a budget within the 4 percent tax cap for the re-vote. The board chose to act similarly when the initial school budget was voted down last year and returned with a budget within the tax cap for the 2018-19 school year.

A vote last year to approve a 13 percent tax levy increase was voted down by the public. The public approved a second budget that kept the tax levy flat.

Bailey recommends the board follow what it did last year if the initial budget is voted down again.

“In essence, you’re really gambling losing the 4 percent because if you go 9 percent or another number above the cap (and not receive a super majority approval) you go back to zero percent,” Bailey said if the current school budget is voted down in May.

If the initial vote and a potential re-vote both are turned down by the community, the district has to return to a contingency budget using the previous year’s tax levy. Any potential school budget above 4 percent will require a super majority approval.

The district also experienced “significant savings” in the current school year as open positions were not filled. Despite efforts by the district, many of those positions were not filled by a full-time employee. Much of those savings occurred at the end of June when the district lost seven employees for various reasons.

While the district saved money where it could, Bailey warned that the same trend could not continue.

“We had a bunch of very unique circumstances this year that we were able to save much more money in our current budget than we ever expected to. We cannot expect those kind of savings in the future,” Bailey said. “We hope to fill all the positions we need. We hope to not lose seven teachers at the end of this year like we did this year.”

The board also approved the purchase of a 65-passenger school bus. Bailey pointed out that the district typically purchases two buses, but decided to put only one up for a vote this year.

The budget vote will be held May 21. A budget hearing will be held on May 13 at the school.

Bailey said while he didn’t necessarily feel “more confident” than last year, he and Bahgat were more hopeful about the current budget. Bailey felt that with the financial focus group comprised of community members that worked throughout the school year to develop a five-year financial outlook, Clymer’s financial situation was better communicated this year.

“I believe we have a better chance of getting more support from the people that understand the situation better,” he said.

If the board-approved budget fails, it will open the door for a wide variety of cuts, including all extracurricular activities and various teacher cuts. The district could survive next year on a 4 percent increase, but Bahgat said it would have to “exhaust all of the fund balance.”

With a 13 percent increase, the district hopes to establish a $416,000 fund balance with reserves of $590,000.

Until the vote, Bailey plans to “continue to talk” to the community about why the 13-percent increase is needed.

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