Brewster School Explains 10% Increase in State Aid

You may have read in yesterday's Journal News that Brewster received a 10% increase in aid from the state. Unfortunately, the headline does not tell the whole story. In reality, the increase in state aid for Brewster amounts to 2.9%.

Here's why:

The majority of the 10% increase is directed to building aid which can only be used to pay down construction debt and cannot be used for the operational needs of the District (e.g., salaries, pension contributions, etc.). Moreover, the state's projected aid for building aid is inflated because the amount is based on an estimate of the costs and completion dates associated with the CV Starr addition/renovation and the JFK addition/renovation projects. The state takes a conservative approach with its estimates and assumes that the projects will be completed for the total budgeted amount and within a certain time-frame. In both instances, the District must deduct from its budget the difference between the projected aid and the actual expected aid or the District would incur a revenue shortfall by budgeting more than it will actually receive.