Neighbor News
Amity Board of Education Approves 2024-25 Budget
A split vote after a failed motion and amendment reveal different perspectives on budgeting among the new Board's members
WOODBRIDGE, CT - On March 11, 2024, the Amity Board of Education voted to approve a modified version of Superintendent Dr. Jennifer Byars' final budget proposal during its regular meeting. The budget was approved after almost two hours, which included the failure of both the proposed increase of 3.65% and an amendment to reduce the increase to 2.86%.
The final approved budget increase is 3.49%, which will be put to referendum vote in all three towns on May 7th. The budget was approved by the Board with eight (8) votes for and four (4) votes against.
Key themes in the Board's debate around the budget included support for academics, whether to defer certain expenses, and the impact to the taxpayers of Orange.
Find out what's happening in Orangefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Superintendent's Proposal
The Superintendent's final budget proposal represented a 3.65% increase over the previous year, down from a proposed 4.90% increase at the beginning of 2024. According to the Superintendent's presentation, it is aligned with the proposed town elementary school increases in Bethany (+5.44%), Orange (+3.5%), and Woodbridge (+3.89%).
Find out what's happening in Orangefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Drivers for the budget increase included salary adjustments from the new teacher's contract, increased costs of health insurance, state mandates, and academic support. Notable additions included increased support for math education, and additional staff related to new state mandates. See Additional Context for the 2024-25 Budget below for more details.
Hartshorn Amendment
After a motion for the proposed budget, Board Vice Chair Sean Hartshorn (Orange) introduced an amendment to revise the increase to 2.86%, stating "Orange [taxpayers] will feel a large burden this year, both from this particular budget increase and our own town's budget increase."
As Hartshorn's introduction did not specify any cuts, a discussion ensued about what changes it would require to the budget. During the discussion, Dr. Byars stated it would not be possible to achieve the amended increase without impacting the administration's plans for academics. Furthermore, she noted that the practice of developing budgets to a number was out of step with the budgeting practice of the district, which is based on needs.
Subsequently, Hartshorn shared he had spent hours coming up with a list of potential cuts based on conversations with Superintendent Byars and Finance Director Terri Lumas, and confirmed it would require the removal of new instructional positions - including additional supports for math education, along with almost all new additions to the budget.
The amendment failed, with four (4) yes votes to seven (7) no votes, and one abstention. A table with all budget votes from the meeting is below.
Vote on Superintendent's Proposal
The amendment having failed, the Board proceeded to vote on the Superintendent's proposal without further discussion. The motion failed, with five (5) yes votes to seven (7) no votes. When Chairman Paul Davis (Orange) invited the Board members who voted "no" to share their reasoning, two (Carol Oladele and Donna Schuster, both of Woodbridge) expressed that the budget did not do enough to support academics.
Final Motion and Vote
After further discussion, members of the Board requested that math tutors and a middle school wrestling coach position be added back in, offset by the removal of an existing bus route, deferment of saving towards a new field replacement (part of a 10 year plan), and a decrease in payments towards retirement benefits (OPEB). Finance Director Lumas had previously noted that any decrease in OPEB would need to be recovered in the future.
This negotation resulted in a budget increase of 3.49%, which was approved following a motion by Patrick Reed (Woodbridge) on a vote of eight (8) to four (4).
Vote Summary:
The following members voted only for the Hartshorn amendment (largest reduction of the budget, impacting academic supports):
- Cathy Bradley (Orange)
- Sean Hartshorn (Orange)
- Dana Lombardi (Orange)
- Michael McDonough (Orange)
The following members voted for the administration's proposed budget, the amended budget, and against the Hartshorn amendment:
- Paul Davis (Orange)
- Carla Eichler (Orange)
- Sudhir Karunakaran (Woodbridge)
- Patrick Reed (Woodbridge)
- Donna Schlank (Bethany)
A detailed list of votes (in the order they were taken) are below (including from the three members who fit neither voting pattern above).
| Board Member | +2.86% | +3.65% | +3.49% | Reasoning (for "no" votes) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrea Hubbard (Bethany) | - | - | - | Absent |
| Donna Schlank (Bethany) | N | Y | Y | Supported initial motion |
| Cathy Bradley (Orange) | Y | N | N | Wanted cuts: Requested explanation of / reduction to Professional Services. Did not want to cut in areas in which students were struggling |
| Paul Davis (Orange) | N | Y | Y | Supported initial motion |
| Carla Eichler (Orange) | N | Y | Y | Supported initial motion |
| Sean Hartshorn (Orange) | Y | N | No | Wanted cuts: Almost all new spend, due to Orange taxpayer burden |
| Christina Levere-D'Addio (Orange) | Abstain | N | Y | Wanted cut: Asked for cut of existing bus route servicing Platt Tech students |
| Dana Lombardi (Orange) | Y | N | N | Wanted cuts: No explanation |
| Michael McDonough (Orange) | Y | N | N | Wanted cuts: No explanation, although supported re-instatement of math tutors |
| Sudhir Karunakaran (Woodbridge) | N | Y | Y | Supported initial motion |
| Carol Oladele (Woodbridge) | N | N | Y | Wanted to restore academic support: Couldn't support budget that doesn't support the children |
| Patrick Reed (Woodbridge) | N | Y | Y | Supported initial motion |
| Donna Schuster (Woodbridge) | N | N | Y | Wanted to restore academic support: Requested re-instatement of math tutors |
Video Link to Meeting.
The March 2024 Amity Board of Education meeting can be viewed on demand.
Additional Context for the 2024-25 Budget
Among the main drivers of Amity's budget increases cited by Superintendent Byars:
- A new teacher's contract (guaranteeing an increase in salary of +4.85% for 2024-25)
- Increases in health insurance costs
- NOTE - based on previously shared data, the new contract and increased benefits costs for existing teacher staff appear to represent the majority (79%) of the approved 3.49% increase. If the Hartshorn Amendment had passed, those mandatory increases would represent 96% of the increase.
- Unfunded state mandates, including new financial literacy requirements and additional support for special education students
- Support for academics, particularly in math
Notable additions to the budget included:
- Additional math interventionists to support students struggling in math at both the middle school and high school level
- Staff required to fulfill state mandates in special education and financial literacy without impact to current course availability
What Happens Next?
The budget will go to public referendum on May 7th in each of the three towns of Bethany, Orange, and Woodbridge during regular voting hours (6AM-8PM). All eligible voters are able to participate. If the budget is approved, it will go into effect during the summer.
Prior to that, there will be a public budget hearing preceding the next Amity Board of Education meeting - Monday, April 8th.
Additionally, each town will hold its own budget hearing, typically in late April - this is scheduled and managed by each town's Board of Finance and full dates have yet to be published.
Currently, the Orange Board of Finance budget hearing is scheduled for April 25th. Details will be posted on the Town of Orange website.
