Rocky Point Budget May Pierce Tax Cap

While no final numbers are in and the Rocky Point administration and Board of Education are still working on a proposed budget, early indications are that the upcoming 2012-13 budget would include a tax levy increase above the two percent cap.

While a proposed budget won't be presented until the Budget Overview scheduled for March 26, Superintendent Michael Ring explained that New York State requires districts to file their intent by March 1.

"We’re required to sign a form with the comptroller saying what we’re going to do based on what we know now, and we believe that [piercing the cap] will be the case," Ring said. "But we don’t have the final revenue numbers from the state and we haven’t completed the expense discussion with the public and the board. We have to tell them by March, so it's our best guess."

For the second straight year, Rocky Point is facing a decrease in state aid. Gov. Andrew Cuomo's proposed budget would decrease the district's aid by $61,673, according to the district's budget presentation given Monday night.

"Last year it was a seven-figure cut," Ring said. "We’re four million dollars below where we should be based on the 2008-09 number growing at a rate of inflation. It’s our expectiaton that the state has decided to put more of the burden on the tax payer."

Beth Dimino, a Rocky Point mother with two graduates of the district, addressed the board at Monday's meeting and expressed the importance of retaining teachers, courses and extracurriculars

"I was very happy to hear that the district is going to pierce the cap," Dimino said. "We need to keep all the AP courses and the extracurriculars because that's the stuff that's going to get the kids scholarships. We really need to consider that in all the decisions that we make."

Some in the crowd voiced displeasure with the district, saying that it isn't at the level it once was, and that it has regressed over the years. Board President Michael Nofi addressed concerns from those in attendance.

"Know that this board is committed to what Rocky Point is and what it can be," he said. "We understand that there are some difficult decisions and difficult times ahead, but we're not giving up on what we believe makes Rocky Point special."