HARRISVILLE — The proposed Harrisville Central School District budget for 2008-09 would increase spending by 8.2 percent and the tax levy by 3.7 percent.
Proposed spending is at $8,659,311, up $653,244 from $8,006,067 this school year.
The proposed levy, or total to be raised by property taxes, is set at $2,994,547, up $107,008 from $2,887,539 in 2007-08. Exact tax rates will not be available until town tax rolls are completed in August.
The tentative budget uses $265,000 from the district fund balance, the same amount as this year, to keep taxes down.
State aid to the district is projected to increase by $560,236, from $4,749,028 to $5,309,264.
Total salaries are projected to increase by $278,230, to $3,253,228, while employee benefits would raise by $205,588, to $2,105,573.
Part of those increases stem from the proposed addition of a special-education teacher and teacher assistant to provide an in-house program, rather than continuing to send students to Edwards-Knox Central School for a St. Lawrence-Lewis Board of Cooperative Educational Services life skills program, said District Superintendent Rolf A. Waters. However, that increase would mostly be offset by lower BOCES expenses.
The primary reason for the proposed move is that the BOCES program may be eliminated or moved to a more-distant location in a couple of years, Mr. Waters said.
"If we don't act now, in a year's time, we might have to send them to Watertown, Heuvelton or Potsdam," he said.
This fall, the district also plans to start a prekindergarten program for up to 28 students, 14 in the morning and 14 in the afternoon.
While $85,571 in designated state aid should cover employee salaries and benefits, the district is budgeting an extra $10,000 in equipment costs for the new program, Mr. Waters said. The purchase of some materials and the addition of two mid-day bus routes, one to take morning participants home and the other to bring in afternoon participants, also will be needed, he said.
The proposed budget also includes $25,000 toward the purchase and installation of new playground equipment.
For the past couple of years, the Harrisville Parent Teachers Organization has been planning and raising funds to replace the original playground, installed during construction of the school building in 1957, Mr. Waters said. With donation of materials by Harrisville Dry Kiln and volunteer labor expected to cover more than $20,000, remaining project costs are estimated at about $30,000, he said.
Board of Education members, after a lengthy discussion, decided that the project was important enough to be included in the budget, Mr. Waters said, noting the district's liability insurance carrier considers the equipment unsafe. If the budget is approved, volunteers would set up the new playground on Sept. 19 and 20, he said.
The cost for diesel fuel and bus repairs is projected to increase by $19,623 to $147,845, while electricity costs are expected to rise by $10,000, to $150,000.
The transportation equipment fund would also be increased from $25,095 to $65,858 to replace an antiquated loader. "We bought it in 1969," Mr. Waters said. "It just won't work."
District voters will vote on the proposed budget from 1 to 8 p.m. May 20 . They also will vote on a few other resolutions, including ones authorizing the district to collect $20,000 — up from $15,000 — on behalf of the Harrisville Public Library and to buy a school bus for up to $97,737.45.
