Joseph Spector – New York State Team USA TODAY NETWORK – in the D&C on 5/13/21 on page A1
ALBANY – New York’s nearly 700 school districts will seek voter approval Tuesday for their budgets for the fiscal year starting July 1, saying they are offering austere spending plans after receiving an infusion of state and federal aid.
The districts are averaging a 2.9% spending increase and seeking to raise the tax levy, which is the total amount of property taxes collected, by 1.4%, state records from Department of Education showed.
Twenty school districts will look to override the property tax cap, which will require a 60% vote from the public.
Still, districts said they have largely been able to stay under the 2% tax cap in large part due to a record state aid increase of 11% in the state budget, which hiked school spending to $29.5 billion, a $3 billion increase from the prior fiscal year.
Also, schools continue to see enrollment drop: The districts estimated they may have about 18,000 fewer students in the fall compared to this year, a drop of 1.2%, the records showed.