State slashes Mid’town school budget reduction
Hespe restores all but
$251,595 to defeated
2000-01 school budget
By elaine van develde

MIDDLETOWN — The state has whittled the $1.6 million school budget cut ordered by the Township Committee to $251,595.

After voters defeated the tax levy for the 2000-01 budget, it went to the Township Committee for review, and the committee reduced it by $1.4 million and cut $200,000 from debt service.

In doing so, the committee recommended a series of cuts with which state Education Commissioner David Hespe disagreed.

The $79.7 million tax levy approved by Hespe means the district will not have to cut programs or staff.

The change gives way to what school officials deem a "manageable school tax rate increase" of 16.2 cents per $100 of assessed property valuation — about $324 extra a year for the owner of a house assessed at $200,000.

"We’re very excited," said Board of Education Vice President Pat Walsh. "This marks a turning point for the Middletown School District as well as the community.

"It will change the way we approach education and at the same time ease the tax burden by cutting the cost of the current referendum."

"The results of the appeal to the commissioner pretty much restore our programs and staffing," said Schools Superintendent Jack DeTalvo. "We said all along that the (budget) reduction would result in the elimination of critical staff and services. Now that won’t be necessary."

DeTalvo didn’t chastise the committee for its choices with regard to the cut; rather, he attributed them to "a lack of time and resources in the area of school budget review."

"The Township Committee was able to see specifically how our explanations were legitimate," he said.

Hespe ordered that $900,000 of the $1.6 million in cuts be restored to the budget. He also restored $200,000 to debt service.

Hespe also sided with the board on the matter of energy savings.

The Township Committee recommended a cut of $200,000 because of anticipated savings through a shared services agreement, but Hespe said the savings would not be that high.

He also restored $400,000 of a $600,000 cut made by the committee in teachers’ salaries, saying that the $600,000 cut would result in a substantial increase in class size and shelve needed programs.

The only thing the commissioner and the committee agreed on was a $200,000 cut in vocational school tuition because the account was over budget.