Wantagh Library Budget Vote

The vote to approve the Wantagh Public Library 2014/2015 budget vote will be held at the library on Tuesday, 4/8 between the hours of 1PM-9PM. Here are a few factoids, among others, you may wish to consider if you are inclined to exercise your right to vote thereon.

Correcting misstatements in prior years’ budget notices and errors/omissions in the current year’s mailed notice, [EJ1] the library confirmed, both on its website and at a public hearing held on March 31 that for the budget year 2014/2015 the average library tax levied on each homeowner in the library district (via the property tax) would be Four Hundred Dollars ($400.00).  Unfortunately, this amount is likely to rise considerably in future years. The Notes accompanying the library’s most recent audited financial statements indicate an unfunded actuarial liability in excess of $750,000 for benefits to employees, exclusive of contributions for state pensions which are funded annually. While not a current liability for balance sheet purposes or an actual bill which will be presented at any time in the future, it nevertheless represents a reasonable approximation of future obligations to library employees which will need to be funded out of future operating revenues, i.e. property taxes. How this situation is managed and how its growth contained are matters that will impact future taxes.

Last year’s budget vote cost approximately $5,000 to hold at a cost of $24.63 per vote cast (202 votes cast in total).  The budget passed by a margin of 72 votes of which at least 15 votes, i.e. 21% or more of the winning margin, were cast either by library employees, the trustees or family members thereof.  The library will not consider seeking to have this vote, which is held at an off time on an off day and is only minimally publicized, held at the same time as the school budget vote in May.  The reason why is quite simple; there is a fear that if more people armed, with the facts, came face to face with the library’s budget proposal in a voting booth it would be defeated.

Combined with the library components of the local school budget, the Wantagh UFSD and library spend approximately $4.4 million on library services.  This strikes me as excessive for our little community.  Voting “no” on this budget will not endanger the library’s existence as it will receive the same amount of funding it received in the 2013/14 fiscal year, which is only $45,500 less than the amount sought in the proposed new budget.  What it will do is send a message to the library and perhaps the school board that there are some rather unpleasant measures which will need to be taken if we are to avoid taxing ourselves into undesirability as a future residence for those to whom we all will need to sell our homes at some point in time. 

Vote!!