Letter To The Editor – Facts That Should Not Be Ignored

To the Editor:
This month property owners are asked to vote for or against their school budget, either for the Berlin or the New Lebanon school.
The Berlin total school budget is $18,757,983 for 901 enrolled students. With a decreased enrollment this year they are still asking for an increase of 1.7%, staying just under the state legal 2% increase. This comes out to the significant amount of $20,819 for each student’s education.
The New Lebanon total school budget is $12,634,633 for 507 enrolled students. With fewer students this year and a 2.1% decrease in the budget, they are still asking the taxpayers for a 1.48% tax increase. This comes to a whopping $24,920 for each student and is $4,101 more per student than what the Berlin District spends.
Since both school districts do an equal job of education, the New Lebanon budget appears to be way over the top by about $2,000,000. These facts should not be ignored when voting up or down for this year’s school budget.
Sincerely yours,
Lucille Salitan
New Lebanon