TURNER — The SAD 52 school board will consider what to do with $250,000 savings related to the pandemic and whether or not to adopt a budget for next year with no tax increase at its next meeting.

Superintendent Kimberly Brandt said Friday that it’s not yet clear how much would need to be trimmed from the current $29.1 million proposed budget to meet the zero percent increase requested by the board.

“We’ll have recommendations for the board on how to get to zero percent and they’ll need to make decisions about whether they’re comfortable with what that looks like or if that feels like we’re trying to cut too deeply,” she said. “My hope is that the board will decide to adopt a final proposed budget on (May 21.) I have proposed that we have our district budget vote on June 25 and then we would then have our budget validation referendum at the polls the same day that we’re going to the primary elections, which is July 14.”

Also left to be decided on May 21 is what to do with $250,000 in savings from not needing spring sports, field trip and out-of-district transportation as well as gas and other budget items.

Brandt said the board will discuss whether it makes sense to apply toward next year’s budget or set it aside in a reserve account.

“We don’t know what this is going to look like,” she said. “We don’t know how state subsidy for FY22 is going to be impacted, we don’t know if there will be curtailments, we just don’t yet know.”

In addition to discussion the budget, at last Thursday’s meeting the board also hired a special education educational technicians III for the day treatment program at Greene Central School, which had been open all year, and a special education autism support program teacher at Turner Elementary School starting in the fall.


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