Brooks: State aid shortchanges Long Island

John E. Brooks is a former member of the Seaford Board of Education. He was a candidate for State Assembly last fall.

Many Long Islanders will go to the polls on Tuesday outraged at high budgets and taxes for schools.

Before voting, they'll consider many things -- household budgets, property values, their feelings about education. But they also may wonder how property taxes for schools climbed so high in the first place.

A large part of the problem is that New York State's aid to schools is out of balance and seriously unfair to Long Island and other downstate counties. Some state aid comes from income taxes, and Long Island and the other downstate counties contribute far more to the funding of state aid than they get back.

Consider that the state budget will provide $19.6 billion to public school districts for the 2011-12 year. After studying figures from the Department of Education in Albany, I have determined that if those funds were divided equally statewide, each district would receive $7,349 per student -- and Nassau and Suffolk counties together would reap about a $1 billion more: $710 million for Nassau and $299 million in Suffolk. Imagine how that kind of tax relief could help the Long Island economy.

The imbalance in aid is stark: In 2011-12, some downstate counties will receive far below the $7,349 average per student. Westchester is due to get $3,743, Nassau $3,848, and Rockland $4,019. Suffolk is 10th-lowest in the state at $6,181. At the high end, Allegany County will get $14,316 per student and Chenango $13,686.

Excluding New York City, the state can be divided into two categories, those primarily funded by state aid and those funded by local property taxes. Out of 57 counties, 35 receive more than 50 percent of their education budget from state aid. Erie County schools gets 78.1 percent of their funds from state aid. Nassau schools get just 16.1 percent, and Suffolk 28.6 percent.

Since incomes are higher downstate, Nassau, Westchester and Rockland are among those counties contributing the most in income taxes to fund aid that's directed elsewhere in the state.

In addition to the funding imbalance, Long Island school districts have placed a premium on quality education -- but at a high cost. Nassau schools spend the third-highest amount per student: $24,618. Suffolk's per-student spending averages $22,056. Upstate Jefferson County is the lowest in the state, $15,064.

So what's the answer?

New York State needs to shift away from the reliance on property taxes in favor of a more equitable distribution of aid from the state income tax. This mechanism would reduce Long Island's property taxes and provide fair funding of education statewide. And it would provide further relief to residents on fixed incomes and to homeowners in districts with few or no commercial taxpayers.

Under this system, the burden for "core" educational expenditures would be covered by the state, according to established guidelines on what should be taught and provided by grade level. Regional cost differences would be taken into account, and the state would pay for special-needs students. Districts would be offered incentives to save money by consolidating some services under a central superintendent, and taxpayers in areas wanting to spend more on education could vote to tax themselves for this purpose.

This kind of system wouldn't allow a flat distribution of state aid -- there are districts, including some on Long Island and many upstate, that are in dire economic straits and would need more funding. But it would correct an imbalance that now shortchanges Nassau by $710 million.

The governor is pushing hard for a cap on property tax hikes this month. A cap on state spending should also be part of the plan.

But, as Long Island voters consider whether to raise their own taxes for schools on Tuesday, they might also vow to push their state legislators to hit the reset button on the way public education is funded in New York, to help reduce property taxes and create a fairer system for all.