MIDDLETOWN, N.Y. -- The Middletown school board is working to develop a new school district budget while fighting a $6 million deficit.
"We're at a similar place we are every year where we're waiting for the legislature to negotiate school aid with the governor," said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kenneth Eastwood.
Governor Andrew Cuomo must work with the senate and assembly to renegotiate a final budget for state aid. Once those numbers are finalized, school districts can base their budgets on how much aid they will receive from the state.
"We had a calculation error in the tax cap, so the tax cap has gone from a reported 7 percent, a little over 7, down to 3 [percent]," Eastwood said.
But, because of that error, the school board now has to find a way to cover a nearly $6 million deficit in the budget.
"One of our largest hits this year is the increase cost in health insurance premiums for all of our employees; that’s about $3.5 million,” Eastwood said.
School Board President Ed Estrada said there's been a 20 percent increase in healthcare costs. He said if the district can't get a better rate on healthcare insuranc,e the district is going to have to make some cuts.
"Dr. Eastwood’s goal has been to cut along the periphery so we don't interfere with what’s happening out in the classroom," Estrada said. "Well, sooner or later, there is no periphery to cut, and so a $3 million shortfall in the healthcare side if we can't make that up somewhere if has to come somewhere within here."
"Over the last six years, we've cut over 150 positions in this district in order to make up the shortfall from the lack of foundation aid that was given to us," Eastwood said.
There are currently 1,200 employees at six schools in the district. Estrada said the district is working with a national health care consultant. The superintendent expects the final proposal based on the legislature's state aid to come out in mid-April.