2013 Three Village Voter Guide: How Will You Vote?

Voters in the Stony Brook and Setauket areas will head to the polls on Tuesday to say “yes” or “no” to the Three Village Central School District’s proposed $184,526,960 million 2013-14 budget.

When this budget was adopted, it was the culmination of months of dialogue over teacher layoffs, rising health insurance costs and skyrocketing state-mandated retirement contributions, increases in teacher salaries, and the programs that have a profound impact upon the students’ education, such as the American Sign Language program, student government, FOCUS program, and gifted education programs. The final version of the budget would cut approximately 67 positions, including about 58 teaching positions and two central administrators.

With the layoffs come changes to the programs students rely on. As the number of teachers is reduced, average class sizes will likely become larger at the elementary levels, and elective course offerings at the secondary level will shrink because there are fewer teachers available to teach those electives.

Will you vote yes or no? Why? Log in to Patch and tell us in the comments.

Proposition 1: Quick Facts
• Proposed Budget: $184,526,960
• Average Tax Increase for Homeowners: $396
• Tax Levy Increase: 4.05 percent (at cap)
• Year-Over-Year Budget Increase: 3.97 percent

Recent Budget Coverage on Three Village Patch:
• School Board Adopts $184.53M Budget Proposal
• Three Village Recovers More Than $900K in State Aid
• Cloud Hangs Over Teacher Layoffs
• School Budget Situation Still Looking Grim

School Board Candidates (vote for two)
• Susanne A. Mendelson (incumbent; first elected to the board in 2010)
• Jonathan Kornreich (incumbent; first elected to the board in 2008)

Polling Information
• Location: All five elementary schools (vote at your “home” school)
     • Arrowhead Elementary – 62 Arrowhead Lane, East Setauket
     • Setauket Elementary – 134 Main Street, Setauket
     • Minnesauke Elementary – 21 High Gate Drive, East Setauket
     • Mount Elementary – 50 Dean Lane, Stony Brook
     • Nassakeag Elementary – 490 Pond Path, Setauket
• Vote between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m.

What if the budget doesn’t pass?
• The school board can choose to put the same budget up for a re-vote at a future date.
• The school board can choose to put up a revised budget at a future date.
• The school board can choose to go right into a contingency budget, which would not increase the tax levy but which would cause $5,361,206 more in cuts.
• If a budget vote fails twice, the school district automatically is subject to a contingency budget.

View related documents on the school district's website.