Bill Text: NY A03150 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Requires the board of education in the city of Buffalo to submit the school district budget to the voters for approval prior to adoption.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-03 - referred to education [A03150 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-A03150-Introduced.html


                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          3150
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    January 27, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  M. of A. PEOPLES-STOKES -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Education
        AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to requiring the board of
          education in the city of Buffalo to submit the school district  budget
          to the voters for approval prior to adoption
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new  section  2531
     2  to read as follows:
     3    § 2531. Adoption of the school district budget in the city of Buffalo.
     4  1.  Notwithstanding  any  law to the contrary, the board of education in
     5  the city of Buffalo shall provide for the submission  of  a  budget  for
     6  approval of the voters pursuant to the provisions of this section.
     7    2.  The board of education shall conduct all annual and special school
     8  district meetings for the purpose of adopting a school  district  budget
     9  in  the  same  manner as a union free school district in accordance with
    10  the provisions of article forty-one of this title, except  as  otherwise
    11  provided by this section. The annual meeting and election of the Buffalo
    12  school  district shall be held on the third Tuesday of May in each year,
    13  provided, however that such annual meeting and election shall be held on
    14  the second Tuesday  in May if the commissioner at the request of a local
    15  school board certifies no later than  March  first  that  such  election
    16  would  conflict with religious observances, and any school budget revote
    17  shall be held on the date and in the same manner specified  in  subdivi-
    18  sion  three  of section two thousand seven of this title. The provisions
    19  of section twenty-six hundred three of this title, governing the  quali-
    20  fication  and  registration of voters, and procedures for the nomination
    21  and election of members of the board  of  education  shall  continue  to
    22  apply, and shall govern the qualification and registration of voters and
    23  voting  procedures  with  respect  to  the adoption of a school district
    24  budget.
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD03618-01-7

        A. 3150                             2
     1    3. The board of education shall prepare  a  proposed  school  district
     2  budget for the ensuing year in accordance with the provisions of section
     3  seventeen  hundred  sixteen  of  this  chapter, including all provisions
     4  relating to required notices and appendices to the statement of expendi-
     5  tures.  No  board  of  education shall incur a school district liability
     6  except as authorized by the  provisions  of  section  seventeen  hundred
     7  eighteen  of  this  chapter.  Such proposed budget shall be presented in
     8  three components: a program component, a capital component and an admin-
     9  istrative component which shall be separately delineated  in  accordance
    10  with  regulations  of  the  commissioner  after  consultation with local
    11  school district officials.  The administrative component shall  include,
    12  but  need not be limited to, office and central administrative expenses,
    13  traveling expenses and all compensation, salaries and  benefits  of  all
    14  school  administrators  and  supervisors, including business administra-
    15  tors, superintendents of schools and  deputy,  assistant,  associate  or
    16  other superintendents under all existing employment contracts or collec-
    17  tive bargaining agreements, any and all expenditures associated with the
    18  operation of the board of education, the office of the superintendent of
    19  schools,  general administration, the school business office, consulting
    20  costs not directly related to  direct  student  services  and  programs,
    21  planning  and all other administrative activities. The program component
    22  shall include, but need not be limited to, all program  expenditures  of
    23  the school district, including the salaries and benefits of teachers and
    24  any  school  administrators or supervisors who spend a majority of their
    25  time  performing  teaching  duties,  and  all  transportation  operating
    26  expenses.  The  capital component shall include, but need not be limited
    27  to, all transportation capital, debt service,  and  lease  expenditures;
    28  costs  resulting  from  judgments  in  tax certiorari proceedings or the
    29  payment of awards from court judgments, administrative orders or settled
    30  or compromised claims; and all facilities costs of the school  district,
    31  including  facilities  lease  expenditures,  the annual debt service and
    32  total debt for all facilities financed by bonds and notes of the  school
    33  district,  and  the  costs of construction, acquisition, reconstruction,
    34  rehabilitation or improvement of school buildings,  provided  that  such
    35  budget  shall  include a rental, operations and maintenance section that
    36  includes base rent costs, total rent costs,  operation  and  maintenance
    37  charges,  cost  per  square  foot for each facility leased by the school
    38  district, and any and all expenditures associated with  custodial  sala-
    39  ries  and  benefits, service contracts, supplies, utilities, and mainte-
    40  nance and repairs of school facilities. Except as provided  in  subdivi-
    41  sion  four  of  this section, nothing in this section shall preclude the
    42  board, in its discretion, from submitting additional items  of  expendi-
    43  ture  to  the voters for approval as separate propositions or the voters
    44  from submitting propositions pursuant to sections two thousand eight and
    45  two thousand thirty-five of this chapter.
    46    4. In the event the qualified voters of the  Buffalo  school  district
    47  reject  the  budget  proposed  pursuant  to  subdivision  three  of this
    48  section, the board may propose to the voters a revised  budget  pursuant
    49  to  subdivision three of section two thousand seven of this title or may
    50  adopt a contingency budget pursuant to subdivision five of this  section
    51  and  subdivision  five of section two thousand twenty-two of this title.
    52  The school district budget for any school year,  or  any  part  of  such
    53  budget  or  any propositions involving the expenditure of money for such
    54  school year shall not be submitted for a vote of  the  qualified  voters
    55  more  than twice. In the event the qualified voters reject the resubmit-
    56  ted budget, the board shall adopt a  contingency  budget  in  accordance

        A. 3150                             3
     1  with  subdivision  five  of  this  section  and subdivision five of such
     2  section two thousand twenty-two.
     3    5. If the qualified voters fail or refuse to vote the sum estimated to
     4  be  necessary  for  teachers'  salaries  and  other  ordinary contingent
     5  expenses, the board shall adopt a contingency budget in accordance  with
     6  this  subdivision  and  shall  levy  a  tax for that portion of such sum
     7  remaining after applying thereto the moneys received or to  be  received
     8  from state, federal or other sources, in the same manner as if the budg-
     9  et had been approved by the qualified voters; subject to the limitations
    10  imposed in subdivision four of section two thousand twenty-three of this
    11  title  and  this  subdivision. Such contingency budget shall include the
    12  sum determined by the board to be necessary for:
    13    (a) teachers' salaries, including the salaries of all members  of  the
    14  teaching and supervising staff;
    15    (b) items of expense specifically authorized by statute to be incurred
    16  by  the  board of education, including, but not limited to, expenditures
    17  for transportation to and from regular school programs included as ordi-
    18  nary contingent expenses in subdivision twelve  of  section  twenty-five
    19  hundred  three  of  this  article,  expenditures for textbooks, required
    20  services for non-public school students, school health services, special
    21  education services, kindergarten and nursery school  programs,  and  the
    22  district's  share  of  the  administrative  costs  and costs of services
    23  provided by a board of cooperative educational services;
    24    (c) items of expense for legal obligations of the district, including,
    25  but not limited to, contractual obligations, debt service, court  orders
    26  or judgments, orders of administrative bodies or officers, and standards
    27  and  requirements of the board of regents and the commissioner that have
    28  the force and effect of law;
    29    (d) the purchase of library books and  other  instructional  materials
    30  associated with a library;
    31    (e) items of expense necessary to maintain the educational programs of
    32  the  district,  preserve  the  property  of  the district or protect the
    33  health and safety of students and staff, including, but not limited  to,
    34  support  services,  pupil personnel services, the necessary salaries for
    35  the  necessary  number  of  non-teaching  employees,   necessary   legal
    36  expenses,  water  and utility charges, instructional supplies for teach-
    37  ers' use, emergency repairs, temporary  rental  of  essential  classroom
    38  facilities,  and expenditures necessary to advise school district voters
    39  concerning school matters; and
    40    (f) expenses incurred for interschool athletics, field trips and other
    41  extracurricular activities; and
    42    (g) any other item of expense determined by the commissioner to be  an
    43  ordinary contingent expense in any school district.
    44    6.  The  commissioner  shall determine appeals raising questions as to
    45  what items of expenditure are ordinary contingent expenses  pursuant  to
    46  subdivision  five  of  this  section  in  accordance with sections three
    47  hundred ten and two thousand twenty-four of this chapter.
    48    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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