School Board Approves Budget and Health Care Reserve and Turns Down Veterans' Exemption

The Scarsdale School Board completed a long year of budget discussions at their April 22 meeting, voting to approve a proposed budget for 2014-15 of $148,200,685 which translates to a 3.76% tax increase for Scarsdale residents and a 1.42% increase for those in the Mamaroneck strip. The proposed increase comes in just below the districts adjust tax cap of 3.94% and will require a 50% approval by voters to pass on Tuesday May 20th.

In addition to finalizing the budget, the Board had to make two key decisions; one involving a proposed tax exemption for veterans and the other on the district's health reserve fund for their self-insured health plan.

Under a law signed by Governor Cuomo in December 2013, the Alternative Veterans' Exemption from school taxes would have granted an estimated 305 veterans who reside in Scarsdale a total exemption of $558,358. Veterans already receive partial exemptions for Village and County taxes, and this new legislation would have extended the benefit to school taxes as well.

However, the burden of the $558,358 would not be funded through the state or federal government– rather it would be shared among the balance of Scarsdale taxpayers who on average would pay another $90 per year. In a discussion about the proposed exemption, Board Member Mary Beth Gose remarked, "This really should be done at the state or federal level. This is a terrible mechanism for funding this."

A vocal group of veterans and their wives attended the meeting to encourage the Board to adopt the exemption.

Bob Rosenthal of Birchall Drive asked if veterans of the Cold War would receive the exemption and encouraged the Board to approve it. Richard Cantor of Innes Road made a plea for better treatment of veterans on a national level saying, there are "Over 120,000 veterans sleeping on the street and 22 veterans a day commit suicide. Look out for our veterans -- see what you can do for them. Anything you can do would be appreciated and more than deserved."

Linda Shapiro of Cushman Road spoke on behalf of her husband who is a veteran. She said, "Most veterans are empty nesters and continue to pay school taxes. Shouldn't we think carefully and generously about the decision of whether or not to grant veterans benefits?"

Phyllis Finkelstein of Fenimore Road is married to a Vietnam veteran who she married three weeks before he went into the service. She said, "People spat at him when he wore his uniform in New York and in Japan he was advised not to wear it.
Today's world is cruel to veterans and we can send a message today and I hope we will."

Martin Millau of Lincoln Road told the board that he served in the Korean War and has lived here since 1968. He said, "We came here for the school district, built a house, put three sons through school who are all doing exceptionally well and I attribute that to the Scarsdale school district. We really want to stay here – if there could be some relief it would be much appreciated."

Newt Schiller of Lee Road said "I have lived here for 41 years and we have earned this exemption."

Board President Suzanne Seiden thanked those who came for their service and for sharing their views with the Board. She said that her father was a veteran and promised to take their views under consideration.

In the discussion that ensued, Dr. McGill advised the board to seek the opinion of a wider swath of the community. He said, "You have only heard from a certain segment of the community – perhaps you should try to get the view of the broader community and make a decision that reflects community values."

Since the board had to make a decision before May 1, Bill Natbony said, "This puts the board in a terrible position on a very short timetable."

Gose raised the question of how this could affect the district's STAR exemption and also said that the Veterans' Tax Exemption would put more pressure on the Board next year if they wanted to propose a budget under the state tax cap. (The value of the $558,000 exemption is about .43% of the total tax levy.) Leila Shames Maude said, "It's for a good cause but it's a shame it's the year of the reval when so many people are dealing with big surprises."

Seiden asked, "Would it make sense to wait until next year to make this decision? We can revisit it this next year .... given the burden of the reval. This could be an increase of taxes of .43% and affect our ability to come in under the cap. We want to do the right thing but this could affect us in ways that we may not be aware of right now."

Ultimately the Board voted 5 to 1 against the exemption, with Lew Leone voting in favor of it.

The Board also discussed whether or not to keep $15,000 in a health insurance reserve to give legislators the opportunity to negotiate to allow the district to maintain the reserve, which has been nixed by state auditors.

Seiden made a move to recommend that $15,000 be left in the reserve until the end of the legislative session on June 19 to see if Scarsdale could get an exemption. Bill Natbony questioned "why does the token deposit in the account makes a difference in their efforts to obtain a legislative solution? Perhaps we should leave the line item in our budget at $0 and say we intend to fund it if we reach a legislative solution. What is the benefit of the token $15,000?"

Seiden explained, "If there is no existing reserve, they (legislators) would have no argument on our behalf. It seems like a good compromise. We want to continue to be transparent with the community while we try to get a legislative fix."

Susie Rush, spoke on behalf of Amy Paulin and said "We will continue to explore the legislative option. The legislation passed in the Assembly but not in the Senate. State Senator Andrea Stewart Cousins has indicated an interest to carry the bill and she feels she can move it if it is couched in this way. We need to have an existing reserve – not just an empty line item."

The Board voted to include the $15,000 in the budget for a health care reserve.