Schools
Voter's Guide: Babylon, W. Babylon School Budget, Board Election
What you need to know for Tuesday's budget votes and school board elections.
The Babylon School District is proposing a $48.31 million budget for the 2014-15 school year, which is a 1.54 percent spending increase over the current budget.
The proposed tax levy increase is 1.48 percent, which is within the state's tax cap. If approved, a taxpayer with a home assessed at $5,000 would pay an additional $150 in school taxes next year (the average home in Babylon is assessed at $4,300).
Five candidates are running for four open seats on the Babylon Board of Education. They are incumbents Alena J. Berenblatt and Dominick Montalto, as well as challengers Elizabeth Altbacker, Carol Ann Dell'Erba and Linda S. Jurs. The top four voter getters will be elected in the at-large election.
Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday at Babylon Memorial Grade School. Read the district's budget newsletter here.
West Babylon
The West Babylon School District is proposing a $100.6 million budget for the 2014-15 school year, which is a 1.93 percent spending increase over the current budget.
The proposed tax levy increase is 3.61 percent, which is over the state's tax cap of 1.36 percent for the district. Therefore, a 60 percent supermajority vote is needed for the budget to be approved. If approved, the average West Babylon homeowner would pay an additional $250 in school taxes next year.
Find out what's happening in Babylon Villagewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Four candidates are running for three open seats on the West Babylon Board of Education. There are incumbent Cathy Gismervik and challengers Leslie Cozzi, Raymond M. Downey, Jr. and Jennifer Longo. The top three voter getters will be elected.
Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday at the West Babylon Administration Building and Santapogue Elementary School. Read more on the proposed budget on the district's website here.
Find out what's happening in Babylon Villagewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
How do you plan to vote on the proposed school budget and school board election? Let us know in the comments section below.
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