PRESS RELEASES

Thursday, April 17, 2008
Record Increase in State Aid for Tuckahoe, Eastchester and Bronxville Public Schools

Assemblymember Amy Paulin announced this week that the Bronxville, Eastchester and Tuckahoe School Districts will each receive a record increase in state aid for the 2008-09 school year.

Tuckahoe schools will receive a total of $2.54 million in state aid, which is an increase of $708,031 over last year. $300,000 of this amount is from a special capital grant secured by Assemblywoman Paulin for Tuckahoe.
Eastchester schools will receive a total of $4.25 million which is an increase of $1,041,756 over last year.
Bronxville will receive a total of $2.4 million which includes a substantial increase in special education funding.

“With a grim economic forecast and a sudden change in leadership, this year’s budget process was particularly challenging. I am very pleased however, that the end result was very positive for these three communities, all of which place a very high value on education. I fought for increased aid to help maintain quality schools and to offset rising property taxes,” stated Assemblywoman Paulin.

In addition to the increase in education funding for all Westchester County school districts several other financial benefits are included in this budget:

WICKS reform – offers school districts (and municipalities) the option of using a Project Labor Agreement to avoid WICKS law requirements - estimated cost savings of between 10% - 30% per building project. Eliminates WICKS entirely for projects under $1.5 million.
Maintains the preferable “select aid ratio” in reimbursable building aid for capital projects.

In preparation of the budget process, Paulin, along with school district business officials, did a thorough analysis of the proposed budget to ensure that the final budget included those specific items that drive the most money to Westchester County school districts. “I have found this process to be very successful in getting increased aid for our districts. I am grateful to the professionals who have always been ready and willing to offer their expertise at this critical time. Working together produced excellent results,” stated Paulin.