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Schools

McDermott, Sabia Square Off Over Letter

Northport Superintendent refutes claims of budget misrepresentations at Monday's Northport BOE meeting; Trustee apologizes but stands his ground.

Northport-East Northport School District Superintendent Marylou McDermott issued a strong statement at Monday night’s BOE meeting refuting comments made by Trustee Joe Sabia regarding the district’s handling of the budget process.

Sabia had issued comments in a Letter to the Editor published by The Observer at the end of April, noting that the district follows the state's best practices regarding the estimating of expenditures and claimed that McDermott had indicated that a zero percent tax levy could only be achieved through cuts to staff or programs.

"Not true," McDermott said, reminding Sabia of the March 5 budget meeting at which the additional use of money from reserves and the unassigned fund balance had been discussed to achieve the zero percent. At that time, McDermott had said she didn't think that was a fiscally responsible idea.

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She also took issue with Sabia's claim that the TAN line was overbudgeted.
McDermott has said throughout the process that some lines include monies to settle the contract. Assistant Superintendent of Business Kathleen Molander said that, at the advice of the external auditors, those monies were spread across several lines so that they would not be revealed to the union during negotiations.

Dr. Nina Dorata called that advice "absurd."

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In his letter, Sabia had also questioned the district’s reporting of state aid numbers, which differed from the $11.5 million used by the state. 

At Monday’s meeting, Sabia sought to clarify the reasons for writing his letter. He said that he was confused by the numbers, which the district had adjusted throughout the process,  and had gotten information from Molander only after he sent the letter. He said Molander confirmed the $11.5 million, but that BOCES, transportation and universal Pre-K aid comes out, leaving approximately $11.3 million.

"I stand by my numbers," Sabia said, adding that he had gotten them from the district’s website and that they had constantly fluctuated. "I don't want to keep this thing going. I have backed down on certain things."

"I cannot and will not tolerate misrepresentation concerning the district," McDermott replied.

Both McDermott and Molander emphasized that state aid is expense-driven.  Final state aid numbers aren't determined until November after districts close their books at the end of June. Molander noted that the numbers change constantly, and can end up being very different than what was originally projected.  For instance, projected BOCES aid in 2010-2011 was $986,307. The actual number was $723,440.

Likewise, Molander said the number can actually go up, as was the case in 2009-2010 when transportation aid increased by $28,000 over the initial projection.

Molander said one reason why there was confusion was because the state's projections on BOCES aid seemed high, leading the district to use a lower aid number in their projections. "They're almost projecting that we will get 40 percent more in aid, which isn't possible," Molander said, noting that the expenditures won't be enough.

Trustee Lori McCue took particular issue with what she felt was a personal attack in the letter on Molander and her handling of the state aid numbers.

Trustee Tammie Topel said she didn’t think anyone was implying that something was "untoward" but suggested that the district and board work more to improve the clarity of the information being provided. She also took the opportunity to thank  Molander for her help and commended her for doing "a fabulous job."

Vice President Donna McNaughton thanked Molander for her patience in dealing with questions and suggested that Sabia ask his questions first rather than having it come out in the paper.

McDermott stood by her colleague. "(Kathleen Molander’s) dedication by far is second to none. From the bottom of my heart, I thank you."

Sabia said his letter wasn’t meant to be personal but rather to express a difference of philosophy on the budget process. “I am very sorry if I hurt Kathleen Molander’s feelings. I think Kathleen Molander is a wonderful person.”

In response to a suggestion by McNaughton, Molander said that going forward, she could add an asterisk to indicate numbers that differ from Albany’s projected aid numbers.

After Tuesday evening's Meet the Candidates meeting, Topel was upbeat about the events of Monday evening, saying the end result was positive. "It really brought to the forefront the need for clarification." 

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