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| 83 percent of budgets approved; pass rate near 36-year average May 18, 2005
ALBANY, N.Y. May 18, 2005 - New York State United Teachers President Richard Iannuzzi today said overall, the union is very pleased with the results of Tuesday's school budget voting. Nearly 83 percent of school budgets won approval statewide - close to the 36-year average. "Once again, New York voters have shown how much they value education," Iannuzzi said. "We've set the bar high for our students; New York has the toughest high school graduation standards in the nation. Now, New Yorkers have shown they understand that an investment in those higher standards is an investment in New York's future." As of 11 a.m., NYSUT had tallied results from 605 of 675 school districts. Of this total, voters approved 501 budgets and rejected 104 - a preliminary pass rate of 82.8 percent. The unofficial 82.8 percent figure is slightly lower than last year's 84.9 percent, but slightly higher than the 36-year average pass rate of 82.4 percent. [UPDATE MAY 19: Final pass rate is 83.5 percent.] Iannuzzi acknowledged some regions of the state had a lower rate of school budgets passing. In fact, 57 of the 104 budget defeats tallied by NYSUT came from just four counties. Lower percentages of budgets passed in Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester and Orange. Meanwhile, more budgets passed in Erie County than many predicted. "Of course, there is always some disappointment," Iannuzzi said. "On Long Island and other areas downstate, we believe voters rebelled not against the quality of their public schools, but rather against local issues not necessarily related to the school budget." Those districts with defeated budgets will now have to make adjustments to address voters' concerns. If a school district's budget is defeated a second time, the district automatically goes on a contingency budget, which this year would cap spending increases at 3.24 percent. "It's an important thing to ensure the continuation of the academic progress New York has made since higher standards were implemented," Iannuzzi said. "Contingency budgets have a very negative impact on educational services." Iannuzzi praised New York voters for continuing to value quality education even in areas that face limited economic growth. "These are not economically comforting times," Iannuzzi said. "It's not easy to vote for a tax increase, but we are reassured so many New Yorkers continue to support quality education." NYSUT, the largest union in New York State, represents more than 525,000 classroom teachers and other school employees; academic and professional faculty at the state's community colleges, State University of New York and City University of New York; and other education and health professionals. NYSUT is affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO. -30- 2005 Budget Defeats (by county)
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CONTACT: NYSUT Media Relations and Communications. (518) 213-6000, Ext. 6313. E-Mail: mediarel@nysutmail.org. |
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