2013 Port Jefferson Voter Guide: How Will You Vote?

Voters in the Port Jefferson school district will head to the polls on Tuesday to say “yes” or “no” to its proposed $39,321,267 million 2013-14 budget.

Sean Leister, assistant superintendent for business, said the two keywords to remember about the budget are “maintenance” and “preparation” – especially when consideration is given to the fact that the situation with LIPA still has so many factors not set in stone.

“Being that there seems to have been a lot of controversy around this budget, we are hopeful that the community will support it,” Leister said. “We’ve made a real effort to maintain our current program while continuing to prepare for a LIPA reassessment.”

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

Proposition 1: Quick Facts
• Proposed Budget: $39,321,267
• Tax Levy Increase: 3.10 percent (under cap)
• Year-Over-Year Budget Increase: 3.27 percent

Recent Budget Coverage on Port Jefferson Patch:
• Proposed Port Jefferson School Budget Under Tax Levy Cap
• Final State Aid Numbers Favor Local Districts

School Board Candidates (vote for three)
• Dennis Kahn
• Kathleen Brennan
• Adam DeWitt
• Ellen Boehm

Polling Information
• Location: Earl L. Vandermeulen High School cafeteria
• Side door adjacent to Old Post Road and breezeway front door of the high school next to the cafeteria will be used for voters to enter and exit the building.
• 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 more 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.