Taxes up as EL taps into reserve

BY C.J. MARSHALL
Wyoming County Press Examiner

The Elk Lake School Board on Thursday unanimously approved a preliminary budget of $20,666,241.66 for 2016-2017 that includes a tax increase for local property owners.

If the proposed budget remains unchanged, property taxes will increase from 39.32 to 40.23 mills in Wyoming County, and from 46.76 to 49.77 mills in Susquehanna County.

Superintendent Dr. Ken Cuomo informed the school board that the district will also have to tap into its reserve funds – such as its fund balance and capital reserves – to meet all its budgetary needs.

“It was a challenge budget-wise not knowing when we were going to get state funding and having to make up the difference,” Cuomo said, referring to the 2015-2016 budget. “Next year is going to be very similar.”

The proposed budget is actually $368,000 less than last year’s budget. But Cuomo cautioned that does not take into account considerable increases in certain expenses the district will have to cover. According to the superintendent, the district will have to pay an additional $390,751 for retirement; an additional $208,000 for salary increases; and an additional $486,360 for medical benefits.

The state will eventually reimburse 50 percent of the money Elk Lake pays out to support the retirement fund. However, the district must have the money in the budget before it receives the refund.

Before the vote was taken, Paul Murphy, of Murphy, Doughtery and Company, of Moscow, provided the board with an audit report for the 2014-2015 school year.

Although there is now about $2,720,000 in the district’s medical fund, Murphy cautioned that could quickly disappear if it is not properly funded.

Cuomo later explained that district has under-funded its medical insurance program for the last two years, and it must be fully funded this year in order to keep it healthy.

In addition, other factors are also having an adverse affect on the amount of money the district receives from the federal government. Cuomo explained that federal guidelines have increased the median family income in the area to $56,000 per year. This means that federal money used to support such programs as transportation and school lunches will be down, with the district having to make up the difference locally.

“Any federal money based on the poverty rate will be down,” Cuomo said.

The district also faces the challenge of capital projects which cannot be put on hold any longer.

Repairs are needed to the tennis courts, Cuomo said, which have been set at $78,500. The repairs have been put off for the last few years due to budgetary constraints. But cracks in the asphalt of the courts have reached a point where the repairs must be done now, because in one to two years it would reach the point where the courts would have to be replaced, at a cost of over $300,000.

The only other option would be for the district to eliminate the tennis program.

Another expense, the superintendent continued, is the cost to repair the paved area in front of the high school, which must be done this year.

Cuomo also pointed out that the district’s telephone system is 13 years old. Replacement parts are no longer available, and its software and wiring are outdated. Cost to replace the phone system was set at $77,000.

“We just keep kicking the can down the road, and sooner or later we’re going to pay a lot more,” the superintendant warned.

In other business, the board voted unanimously to hire Metz Culinary Management of Dallas to manage the district’s food services program, effective July 1.

The board took the action because rising costs have made it prohibitively expensive to maintain the program.
After the vote was taken, board President Arden Tewksbury said that although he has reservations about the action, the district has reached the point where it must make such a decision, due to budgetary constraints.

Included in the vote was a provision that the administration would consult with the district’s food service support staff to make the transition as smooth as possible.

Tewksbury said he wants to be certain all the employees affected by the decision will be supported during the transition.

Also:
*Joe Carlin and Jackie McGlynn asked the board what action the district intends to take concerning the recent edict of the Obama administration calling for transgender students to be allowed to use restrooms of their preferred sexual orientation. Cuomo said the district does not have any specific plans to comply with the edict at this time, but if the matter becomes an issue, the public will definitely be invited to provide input.
*The board approved participation in the National Archery in Schools program, which will offer archery to students in grades three to six in the physical education class.
*The board set Saturday, June 11 as the graduation date. The event is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. in the high school gymnasium.
*Elementary School Principal Marc Weisgold reported that Field Day for the elementary students will be May 27, with a rain date of May 31.