Residents of the Huntington School District are being asked to authorize creation of a new Building Improvement Fund when they go to the polls next Tuesday, May 21. The new fund would replace a similar one that is set to expire soon.
School officials are seeking permission to create the new fund for the purpose of completing district wide renovation and reconstruction projects. Establishing the fund will have no impact on taxes.
Use of successive Building Improvement Funds has allowed the Huntington School District to largely avoid the need for selling bonds and incurring debt service payments to update its facilities. The district has one of the lowest levels of debt of any school system on Long Island. By avoiding bonding, taxes have been kept lower than they otherwise would have been.
“This represents a logical sequence of events,” Superintendent James W. Polansky said. “As the existing Building Improvement Fund approaches its voter approved contribution cap, a similar replacement fund will be presented for voter approval on the upcoming ballot. No monies will be contributed to the fund at this time; approval will simply permit the fund’s establishment. This is critical if the district is to meet its capital needs moving forward.”
As is the case for the current fund, existing budget monies would once again be used to capitalize the new fund. If in any given year the district spends less money than it had originally anticipated, these surplus monies could be transferred by the Huntington School Board into the new Building Improvement Fund.
Monies contained in the Building Improvement Fund can only be used for capital projects, such as new school roofs, windows, doors, boilers, facility improvements, etc. None of the monies can be used for general school district expenditures.
If residents approve the proposition, the district would be authorized to transfer up to $2 million in any given year as may be available at the end of each fiscal year beginning June 30, 20013 and running through June 30, 2021. The ultimate amount would be capped at $10 million. Residents would still have to give permission before the district actually begins any project.
The school district would be able to apply for state aid on any capital project it completes. This fund would also utilize existing monies and allow the district to avoid borrowing funds through a bond issue. Passage of this proposition will not increase taxes.
Residents can vote on the Building Improvement Fund proposition, along with a second capital proposition to release monies from the existing Building Improvement Fund along with the proposed 2013/14 budget and candidates for two Huntington School Board seats on Tuesday, May 21 from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the lobby at Huntington High School.
