Poll workers sat in the hot middle school gym on June 16 as a record number of voters came out to support the district’s $17 million 2015-16 school budget. (Photos by Rick Stilson)
Poll workers count the votes after the polls were closed. Pictured are District Clerk Jill Reese, who is seated, Julie Wendela, Shirley Sherman, Cynthia Bennett, and Jill Keeler. The count took an hour and a half, finishing at 9:35 p.m.
In the crucial second vote to determine the 2015-16 budget for the Tioga Central School District, voters came out in numbers that smashed their previous record turnout on May 19. Voters turned down a 30 percent increase to school taxes during the May 19 vote, with 1,255 casting ballots.
In the June 16 vote, 1,573 votes were cast, and the new budget was approved 1,076 to 441, nearly a 70 percent margin of victory and more than enough for the 60 percent majority necessary to approve a 17.23 percent tax levy increase
Another 56 votes were ruled invalid by poll workers. The new budget raises the tax per thousand of assessed value by $1.61, adding to the current $9.30 for a total of $10.91 per $1,000 of assessed value.
Superintendent Scot Taylor was nearly speechless when he heard the news, minutes after the ballots were counted in the Middle School Gymnasium.
“It’s great news for the kids and this community,” Taylor said. “It gives us solid footing as we go forward”.
The district was able to meet its goals of preserving core programs for a complete and competitive educational experience for the students with the passage of the adjusted budget, Taylor said.
Several cuts were made to the budget after it failed, including programs and staff salaries, including Taylor’s.
A donation from Jeff Gural, CEO of American Racing and Entertainment and owner of Tioga Downs, Vernon Downs, and the Meadowlands in New Jersey of $294,479 helped to further reduce the tax levy. The donation will support several co-curricular and extra curricular programs, according to previous statements from Taylor.
While the amount is known, the exact timing and other details remain to be worked out between Gural and the district, Taylor said.
“I am glad that we were able to come up with a plan to help the school district get this budget passed so that the students would be able to continue to participate in all of the extra curricular activities that are important to a well rounded education.” said Gural on Tuesday evening, and following the passage of the vote.
Taylor was overwhelmed by the community’s support for the new budget. “This shows tremendous support by the community for the school and these kids,” Taylor said.
Taylor added, “That’s why this community is so great. It comes together in support like with the 2006 and 2011 flooding. It’s a great thing.”
While Taylor was overjoyed with the June 16 voting result, he was looking to the future.
“We’ve got work to do going forward,” Taylor said. “It was a difficult spring.”
