Is a Tax Cap a Good Idea?
The following is an article by NBTO President Selina Durio which addresses that issue. It was printed in the May/June issue of "Partners in Education," a publication of the North Babylon Teachers' Organization.
IS A TAX CAP A GOOD IDEA?
What Is a Tax Cap?
There is much talk about NYS imposing a Property Tax Cap, which Gov. Cuomo supports, and there is much confusion about what it is and what its impact would have on school districts. To understand the Tax Cap, one needs first to understand the School Property Tax Levy. The School Property Tax Levy represents the amount of funding a school district needs to raise through property taxes to balance its budget. The property tax levy is calculated as follows:
Projected School Spending
(-) minus state aid
(-) minus other revenues
(-) minus prior year's fund balance
= Property Tax Levy
What Would a Tax Cap Do?
On Long Island property taxes comprise nearly 70% of school funding; the remaining 30% comes from other sources, such as state aid. The proposed Property Tax Cap would cap tax levy growth at the lesser of 2%, or 120% of increase in Consumer Price Index (CPI). It would NOT cap the tax rate or an individual's tax bill. Higher district costs, less state aid, and a cap would, however, increase the required cuts in our school budget. Unfunded state mandates (those required by the state without the accompanying state funding), employee benefits, and energy related cost increases, will consume most, if not all, of the capped increase. Consequently, the district would be required to cut programs and services to reduce the district budget to fit within the cap. Our district already drastically reduced the overall budget for the 2011-2012 school year so if a Tax Cap is enacted, we are starting at a lower base on which that Tax Cap would be calculated and a lower base from which to build upon. Consequently, the district would be forced to make even greater cuts to fit within the cap and there is NO WAY to avoid programs being cut severely if a Tax Cap is imposed for the 2012-2013 school year. A Tax Cap, in effect, would save the taxpayer very little money at the expense of non-mandated programs such as art, music, sports, and extracurricular activities.
A Tax Cap Already Exists
A cap already exists--it is the contingency budget cap set by NYS. However, it is appropriately implemented AFTER voters have their say and reject a budget, rather than BEFORE a community vote. With the new Tax Cap that Gov. Cuomo is talking about, if the community wants to have a tax levy above the 2% the current state proposal would require, in order to maintain programs, a super majority vote of over 60% would be required to approve the levy. Given so much voter apathy, going from a simple majority to a super majority is a big hurdle for any district.
Why is the state proposing to take away our right as a tax payers to determine what we are willing to support in out community school budget? No one likes paying taxes, but aren't the children of North Babylon worth giving the community the opportunity to decide for ourselves what we are or are not willing to pay for the education of our children? We need to let our voices be heard. We need to contact our representatives in Albany and tell them that we, not the governor and the legislature, want the right to decide the fate of education in our district.