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Lewiston-Porter voters approve budget

by jmaloni
Sat, Jun 22nd 2013 07:00 am

by Janet Schultz

Voters in the Lewiston-Porter Central School District responded positively to the $39,647,771 budget presented at the second vote on Tuesday night.

With 1,618 yes votes and 960 no votes, the new budget will increase the tax levy by 3.95 percent.

After defeating the first proposal set at $40,001,368 and a 5.52 percent tax levy increase, the Lew-Port School Board and administration went back to work and made additional cuts in personnel, programming and administrative costs.

"There's not a lot to celebrate in this budget," said Board of Education President Jodee Riordan. "But I'm relieved it passed and we had a great turnout.

"The residents got out to support education at Lew-Port."

Superintendent Christopher Roser, while happy it passed, said he is concerned about the future.

"For the students and education at Lew-Port, I'm really appreciative of the positive vote," Roser said. "If it hadn't been positive, the education we have experienced at Lew-Port would have been drastically different.

"I have learned that I will have to really do things differently for next year's budget."

"First, I'm very appreciative of voters coming out the second time around," said Lewiston-Porter United Teachers President Kevin Jaruszewski. "But having to say goodbye to people in the next couple days who were laid off makes it bittersweet.

"School budgets have become a business, and starting tomorrow we need to start working on what strategies will work and not work so we can rebuild."

The next regular board meeting is scheduled for June 25 at 6:30 p.m.

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