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Friday, April 26, 2024
Vol. 12, No. 17
KIDS GUIDE
2 TEENS RESCUE 3 FROM MANHASSET BAY
RUNNING 7 MARATHONS IN 7 DAYS
PAGES 21-28
PAGE 2
PAGE 47
State aid to schools rises in budget deal
GO GREEN WEEK
N. Shore districts see gains with $1.3B increase, continuation of Hold Harmless Nassau County schools will receive a year-to-year 5.69% boost in state aid, with a majority of North Shore districts seeing increases from the prior year and from Gov. Kathy Hochul’s initial proposal. The New York State Legislature adopted the 2024-2025 $237 billion state budget nearly three weeks late Saturday, which encompassed an additional $1.3 billion in school state aid and the continuation of the foundation aid Hold Harmless policy. Overall, more than $35.3 billion is being allocated to schools throughout the state, increasing by 3.82% from the prior year. Also adopted in the budget is a 421-p tax incentive to construct housing outside New York City, including $650 million in discretionary funds for pro-housing communities, $500 million for the construction of up to 15,000 new homes on state land and incentives for accessory dwelling units. The school aid increase comes after months of pushback from local school districts opposing the governor’s proposal to repeal Hold Harmless, a procedure that ensures school districts receive the same amount or
more in foundation aid from year to year. But with all school districts adopting budgets before the state budget passage, it is uncertain how these late school aid numbers will impact their budgets. The Manhasset School District was at the forefront in advocating for the continuation of the Hold Harmless policy, with nearly every budget meeting including a push for residents to advocate for the re-implementation and to reach out to their representatives. The district was facing a $629,000, or 20.7%, drop in its foundation aid. Yet it crafted its budget on the assumption that these funds would be restored. If it was not restored, then its fallback was fulfilling those $629,000 in missing funds with FEMA recovery funds. The Manhasset School District will now be receiving the largest proportional increase in state aid with a 25.4% boost. In total, it will be getting $6,318,661 in state aid, a $1,279,686 increase from the prior year. The state aid numbers are based on state legislation as reported by Newsday. The state aid numbers represent the total state aid, with breakContinued on Page 44
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE MANHASSET SCHOOL DISTRICT
Mrs. Liotta and Mrs. Lidonnic’s second-grade class at Shelter Rock Elementary enjoyed a nature walk to discover living and non-living things during Go Green Week.
3 newcomers vie for 2 ed board seats in Manhasset BY C A M E RY N O A K ES Manhasset Board of Education Vice President Jill Pullano and Trustee Erin Royce are not seeking re-election to the board this May, with three newcomers joining the
BEST
10TH ANNUAL
2024
BY C A M E RY N O A K ES
OF
NASSAU
COUNTY WWW.THEISLAND360.COM/CONTEST2024
race for the two open board member seats. Running for the two seats on the board are Eileen Bauer, Marianna Bruno and Maria Pescatore. The two board seats are for a three-year term which would begin
vote
on July 1 and end on June 30, 2027. Efforts to solicit comment from the two exiting board members and the three candidates were unavailing. Both Pullano and Royce, who Continued on Page 38
NOW THROUGH MAY 24
WHO WILL BE THE FAVORITES IN 2024? https://theisland360.com/bonscontest/