Tax Cap Decried at East Quogue School Board Meeting

How do you make Les Black, superintendent of the East Quogue Union Free School District, mad? Bring up the idea of a tax cap, which was a topic the board spent time discussing during its Monday night regular board meeting.

“The governor is taking over what should be the right of every community,” said Black. “They’re saying we know better than you what you can afford. It’s undemocratic. In the history of the county I don’t think this has ever happened.

Black was referring to bill submitted by Gov. Andew Cuomo in January that proposes limiting the increase in the tax levy to a maximum of 2 percent per year. If passed, the bill would have the community voting not on the district’s school budget, but on the tax levy for the town. Voters would have two chances to pass the increase, after that no increases would be allowed.

Board Vice President Kathryn Tureski asked what about if the Westhampton Beach district, where East Quogue students attend middle and high schools, raised their tuition.

“So what,” said Black. “So what?”

The tax cap bill has passed in the State Senate, but passage in the Assembly is questionable, and definitely not before the budget passes, even though business groups are pushing for it.

Black also noted that the cuts to education aid in Cuomo’s budget would set East Quogue back by 17 percent.

The issue is one that all local school boards are struggling with and in an effort to collaborate, on Thursday night, the Hampton Bays School District is hosting a Southampton-wide meeting to discuss the proposal as well as other state-aid cuts.

Student's Honored

In other East Quogue School District news, the board and Principal Robert Long Jr. recognized sixth grader Hannah Wagner and second graders Patricia Gilvary, Jacqueline Amato and Mary Koltzan as art student and principal’s choice awardees for the month of January respectively. The students and the parents attended the meeting.

Also being honored were sixth grade students of Miss Luckingham—Kristen Dillon, Garrett Richter, Daniela Robles, Cara Saccente, Ariana Stephen and Kole Tokarski—for initiating and maintaining a school store, which they keep on a cart and take to a different grade level each week. The students said that they did all the research, calculated potential profits and did the ordering all themselves. The store sells school shirts, bookmarks, notebooks pencils and key chains.