Ten Point Analysis of the Impact of the State Budget on Long Island Schools (All Calculations Include Building Aid)

Suffolk County School Superintendents Association

REGIONAL IMPACT

• Long Island schools enroll approximately 17% of the students in the state but will receive only 12% ($2.335 billion) of all school aid ($19.360 billion).

• Long Island public schools will receive less aid next year ($2.335 billion) than four years ago, in 2007-08 ($2.499 billion). Aid as a share of projected expenditures will drop to 21.4% in 2011-12, down from 25.7% in 2007-08.

• Between 2010-11 and 2011-12, Long Island schools will lose $89.3 million in Federal support and $90.4 million in state aid, for a total loss of $179.7 million. This represents an aid loss of 7.1% from year to year.

• Long Island schools experienced an overall aid loss 14.5% greater than the rest of the state (7.1% vs. 6.2%). • Long Island school aid per pupil is reduced to $4,326, which is 31.2% lower than the rest of the state ($6,285).

FORMULA ISSUES

• The school aid formulas remain broken. There are 29 low wealth (CWR<1.0) school districts on Long Island enrolling 37.5% of the students (171,142). Of the 25 that are losing aid, one in five will experience a cut in excess of 7%.

• Foundation Aid, which comprises 77% of all state aid, is $3,329 per pupil on Long Island. This is 31.2% lower than the rest of the state ($4,835).

TAX LEVY IMPACT

• The loss of $179.7 million in state support is the equivalent of a 2.4% increase in the Islandwide property tax levy ($7.467 billion).

• On a county by county basis, the loss of aid will drive a 3.2% property tax levy increase in Suffolk and a 1.7% property tax levy increase in Nassau.

TAX CAP SCENARIO

If the proposed tax cap was in effect for 2011-12, Islandwide school spending would have to be reduced by $314.5 million in order to live within the cap, assuming the following:

• Costs increased by 3.5% • Applied fund balance is unchanged • Cap set at 2%

The impact of the necessary cuts would differ dramatically between school districts.