Bay Shore 2020-21 School Budget Live Vote Tonight

BAY SHORE, NY — Tuesday marks the last day that residents can vote whether or not to approve the district's proposed 2020-2021 school budget, as well as elect the school board and library trustees.

All registered voters who live in the district's boundaries received an absentee ballot in the mail with a postage-paid return envelope, the district said. To be counted, school budget ballots can be accepted by hand delivery through 5 p.m. on June 9 and received by mail through June 16 by the school district.

The Bay Shore School District's proposed spending plan for the 2020-21 school year is $162,967,087 . That's a 2.24 percent increase from the current budget. To fund the increase, the district proposes a tax levy of $113,329,894, up 3.70 percent from the current year's.

Typically, the Board of Education adopts the budget and it is presented to the community about a month before the annual vote. Gov. Andrew Cuomo changed the voting process this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Ballots are being opened and tallied on Tuesday, June 16; there will be a public viewing area available in the new gymnasium lobby of the Bay Shore High School. Masks and social distancing are mandatory to enter the viewing area. This year the district’s Meet the Candidates and Budget Hearing event was held remotely on June 1, 2020. A recording can be viewed on the District's Facebook page.