Voters approve Pine Plains school budget with nearly $300K in cuts

PINE PLAINS — Voters approved a school district budget on Tuesday, June 16, that cut three staff positions to save nearly $300,000 in expenses.

After the initial budget failed in May, Pine Plains Central School District administrators cut expenses to bring the tax levy within the state’s tax cap. Since the revised spending plan complied with the cap, it required only a simple majority for approval.

The second budget passed easily on June 16. The final vote count was 643 votes in favor, and 288 against.

The new budget is $290,569 less than the first budget. The reduction primarily came from eliminating three staff positions — a head bus driver, typist and nurse.

The budget’s passage now means the district will avoid much deeper cuts than what would have been required had it been voted down a second time. The mandatory contingency budget, which would have gone into effect, would have resulted in $945,789 in additional reductions and a freezing of capital projects.

The district has now moved forward with capital plans with the new budget in place. It has announced plans to replace the floor tiles at Seymour Smith Intermediate Learning Center and is continuing repair work on the roof at Stissing Mountain Jr/Sr High School.

The high school’s tennis courts and track will also be resurfaced this summer. Work is expected to begin in late June, and will last until Sept. 1. During this time, Seymour Smith and the affected athletic fields will be closed.