Bill Text: NY A03521 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Relates to capping property tax increases on schools at the lesser of two percent or the current consumer price index in contingency budgets.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-03-27 - held for consideration in education [A03521 Detail]
Download: New_York-2011-A03521-Amended.html
S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
3521--A
2011-2012 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
January 25, 2011
___________
Introduced by M. of A. PRETLOW -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Education -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered
reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to capping property tax
increases on schools at the lesser of two percent or the current
consumer price index in contingency budgets
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
1 Section 1. Paragraph a of subdivision 4 of section 2023 of the educa-
2 tion law, as added by section 24 of part A of chapter 436 of the laws of
3 1997, is amended to read as follows:
4 a. The contingency budget shall not result in a [percentage increase
5 in total spending over the district's total spending under the school
6 district budget for the prior school year that exceeds the lesser of:
7 (i) the result obtained when one hundred twenty percent is multiplied by
8 the percentage increase in the consumer price index, with the result
9 rounded to two decimal places; or (ii) four percent] TAX LEVY OF MORE
10 THAN TWO PERCENT OR THE CURRENT CONSUMER PRICE INDEX, WHICHEVER IS
11 LOWER.
12 S 2. Section 2023 of the education law is amended by adding a new
13 subdivision 2-a to read as follows:
14 2-A. UPON THE APPROVAL OF THE EMPLOYEES OF SUCH AFFECTED SCHOOL
15 DISTRICT, THE CONTINGENCY BUDGET SHALL NOT RESULT IN A PERCENTAGE
16 INCREASE IN TOTAL SPENDING FOR LABOR COSTS OVER THE DISTRICT'S TOTAL
17 SPENDING FOR LABOR COSTS UNDER THE SCHOOL DISTRICT BUDGET FOR THE PRIOR
18 SCHOOL YEAR.
19 S 3. Subdivisions 1 and 2 of section 1608 of the education law, subdi-
20 vision 1 as amended by section 5 of part A of chapter 436 of the laws of
21 1997 and subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 640 of the laws of 2008,
22 are amended and a new subdivision 1-a is added to read as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03305-02-1
A. 3521--A 2
1 1. It shall be the duty of the trustees of each common school district
2 to present at the annual budget hearing a detailed statement in writing
3 of the amount of money which will be required for the ensuing year for
4 school purposes, specifying the several purposes and the amount for
5 each. The amount for each purpose estimated necessary for payments to
6 boards of cooperative educational services shall be shown in full, with
7 no deduction of estimated state aid. The amount of state aid provided
8 and its percentage relationship to the total expenditures shall also be
9 shown. AFTER THE TRUSTEES HAVE PRESENTED THE PROPOSED SPENDING PLAN FOR
10 THE ENSUING SCHOOL YEAR, THE PUBLIC SHALL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS
11 THE TRUSTEES WITH ANY CONCERNS, QUESTIONS OR SUGGESTIONS REGARDING THE
12 DETAILS OF SUCH SPENDING PLAN. THE TRUSTEES SHALL TAKE SUCH CONCERNS OR
13 SUGGESTIONS INTO CONSIDERATION WHEN AMENDING SUCH SPENDING PLAN. This
14 section shall not be construed to prevent the trustees from presenting
15 such statement at a budget hearing held not less than seven nor more
16 than fourteen days prior to a special meeting called for the purpose,
17 PROVIDED THAT THE GENERAL PUBLIC SHALL BE GIVEN NOTICE IN ADVANCE OF
18 SUCH SPECIAL MEETING AND SHALL BE GIVEN AN OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS THE
19 TRUSTEES WITH ANY CONCERNS, QUESTIONS OR SUGGESTIONS REGARDING THE
20 DETAILS OF THE PROPOSED SPENDING PLAN, nor from presenting a supplemen-
21 tary and amended statement or estimate at any time.
22 1-A. IT SHALL BE THE DUTY OF THE TRUSTEES TO PREPARE AND MAKE AVAIL-
23 ABLE COPIES OF ANY AMENDED STATEMENTS OR ESTIMATES OF THE PROPOSED ANNU-
24 AL BUDGET, UPON REQUEST AND AT THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OFFICES, AT ANY
25 PUBLIC LIBRARY OR FREE ASSOCIATION LIBRARY WITHIN THE DISTRICT AND ON
26 THE SCHOOL DISTRICT'S INTERNET WEBSITE, IF ONE EXISTS, TO RESIDENTS
27 WITHIN THE DISTRICT PRIOR TO THE ELECTION OR SPECIAL DISTRICT MEETING AT
28 WHICH THE BUDGET VOTE WILL OCCUR.
29 2. Such statement, AS DESCRIBED IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION,
30 shall be completed at least seven days before the budget hearing at
31 which it is to be presented and copies thereof shall be prepared and
32 made available, upon request and at the school district offices, at any
33 public library or free association library within the district and on
34 the school district's internet website, if one exists, to residents
35 within the district during the period of fourteen days immediately
36 preceding the annual meeting and election or special district meeting at
37 which the budget vote will occur and at such meeting or hearing. The
38 board shall also as a part of the notice required by section two thou-
39 sand three of this chapter give notice of the date, time and place of
40 the budget hearing and that a copy of such statement may be obtained by
41 any resident in the district at each schoolhouse in the district in
42 which school is maintained during certain designated hours on each day
43 other than a Saturday, Sunday or holiday during the fourteen days imme-
44 diately preceding such meeting. The board shall include notice of the
45 availability of such statement at least once during the school year in
46 any district-wide mailing distributed. THE BOARD SHALL INCLUDE NOTICE
47 OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC'S OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS THE TRUSTEES WITH ANY
48 CONCERNS, QUESTIONS OR SUGGESTIONS CONCERNING THE PROPOSED SPENDING
49 BUDGET AT THE ANNUAL BUDGET MEETING OR SPECIAL MEETING.
50 S 4. Section 305 of the education law is amended by adding a new
51 subdivision 42 to read as follows:
52 42. THE COMMISSIONER SHALL ESTABLISH AND IMPLEMENT A PROGRAM THAT
53 ENCOURAGES SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO ENTER INTO A PROGRAM OF SHARED EDUCA-
54 TIONAL SERVICES WITH A SCHOOL DISTRICT'S MUNICIPALITY AND/OR BOARD OF
55 COOPERATIVE EDUCATIONAL SERVICES OR COUNTY GOVERNMENT. SUCH PROGRAM
56 SHALL BENEFIT FROM MATCHING FUNDS FROM PRIVATE SOURCES AS INCENTIVES TO
A. 3521--A 3
1 THOSE SCHOOL DISTRICTS THAT DEMONSTRATE SUCCESSFUL PARTICIPATION IN A
2 PROGRAM OF SHARED EDUCATIONAL SERVICES AND POSITIVE FINANCIAL GAIN AS A
3 RESULT OF SUCH PARTICIPATION. THE COMMISSIONER SHALL BE AUTHORIZED TO
4 PROMULGATE ANY REGULATIONS NECESSARY TO IMPLEMENT THE PROVISIONS OF THIS
5 SUBDIVISION.
6 S 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
