The North Syracuse School District has dropped a bombshell on local taxpayers.

The superintendent announced Thursday that the district owes New York State close to $20 million — $19.4 million, to be exact.

North Syracuse School leaders say in a letter sent home Thursday they were notified back in 2015 that there were compliance issues with previous capital projects.  Specifically, 23 final cost reports for six different capital projects were filed late.

Originally the State Department of Education was seeking $50 million in penalties, but through a series of actions the district was able to whittle that number down to $20 million.

The payments need to be made over 10 years, with the first payment of $1.9 million due in June.

North Syracuse has not said how it plans to pay back the money owed, however they are already seeking a 2.9 percent tax levy increase in this year's budget.