CLYMER — Clymer Central School officials are moving ahead with the prettiest of three ugly budget scenarios.

The budget approved by the board on Monday includes a 0.83% tax levy increase, which is less than the state’s tax cap, and retains a 4.6% district surplus.

The approved budget also comes with a pay freeze for both of the district’s unions, cuts one teaching position, eliminates a new core reading program that was to begin in September and an increase in unemployment costs. It is also based optimistic state aid receipts.

“We do have the option of adopting a budget,” said Ed Mulkearn, board president. “What I’m hearing is we can adopt option 1, which gives us the most optimistic look we can take and hopefully with a little bit of luck we won’t have major cuts. Then we would be where we thought we were going to be a couple of months ago. If we’re going to want to talk about options two or three, then I would be hesitant because we talked about option 1 quite a bit in our budget workshops. I would be quite hesitant to vote on options two or three this evening.”

The second and third budget options Mulkearn referred to were also detailed by Louann Baghat, district business executive. The second budget option is based on roughly the district being $130,000 short on state aid and cuts three teaching positions.

The third budget option reflects a 20% reduction in state foundation aid, roughly $807,000. It would cut seven teaching positions, a guidance counselor’s position, change a principal’s position from full-time to part-time, eliminate any additional classroom activities for kindergarten through eighth grades, cut junior varsity sports. All of those cuts, Baghat said, and additional use of the fund balance only add up to $672.000, which means there would be more cuts required.

“Option three is one which hopefully we never see,” Baghat said.

The district had to adopt its budget by May 21 with a public hearing tentatively scheduled for June 1. Board members chose to approve the first budget option while being prepared to make cuts quickly if state aid numbers turn out to be less than anticipated in the best-case budget. Baghat said the district had expected to have a state aid reduction in hand last week but notice from the state never came.

A late April analysis by Robert Mujica, state budget director, warned of deep cuts of more than $10 billion for aid to local governments ranging from school aid to health care programs unless additional federal aid to New York state was approved by the federal government. Democrats in the House of Representatives have introduced a $3 trillion stimulus bill that includes increased aid to state and local governments, but it is unknown when that bill may be approved or what it’s final form will be. In the meantime, the state has not yet released possible cuts.

“We’re not getting any more information about our aid at this point in time that I’m aware of,” Baghat said. “We were supposed to get new aid numbers last week and we didn’t get them. Nobody has really discussed when they’re going to release anything related to any changes in the state aid. I think the best thing we can do is come up with the scenarios that we have and go with whatever option you think is more reasonable and then potentially having to adjust to the extreme as we find out confirmation. I’m not sure we’re going to find out any concrete information. With the fact he’s saving we’re on a rolling budget, we will have to probably be on a rolling decision as well. We’ll look at this carefully week-to-week.”

Baghat said she is closely monitoring all purchases, though requisitions have decreased since school has been closed. The district may be able to pad its fund balance somewhat going into the 2020-21 school year if spending for 2019-20 comes in at less than budgeted. The COVID-19 pandemic is leading to an increase in unemployment insurance spending. The budget approved by the board on Monday increases spending on unemployment to $50,000.

“We’ve received numerous letters from unemployment for many individuals that were part-timers for the district or short-term assignment — our substitutes or other summer help we might have had over the past,” Baghat said. “Since we’re self-insured we will be responsible for a portion of their unemployment.”