Letter: Elmont right to lower school budget
At a forum about the upcoming budget revote in the Elmont School District, Stewart Manor resident Joanne Corrao expressed her concerns about the budget that goes beyond the tax-cap limit. Corrao was looking for compromise from the school board and urged the board to consider cuts in school programs that she considers non-essential. The Elmont budget, was rejected the first time around. (May 30, 2012) Credit: Newsday/John Paraskevas
The Elmont school board made a wise decision to trim about $500,000 from its once-defeated school budget before the scheduled revote on June 19 ["District lowers tax plan," News, June 7].
The board had planned to submit the exact same budget for a second time. Such a strategy is often disastrous, and can be seen as an arrogant action that says to the community, "You didn't like it once? Well, here it is again."
A budget, after all, is only a spending plan. No matter how much a school board believes in a particular budget, there are always alternatives, some more palatable to a community than others.
Richard J. Meagher, Elmont
Editor's note: The writer is a former East Rockaway school board member.
