Long Island Association, labor, schools and local pols ask Spitzer

The Long Island Association, along with labor leaders, reps from parent-teacher associations and local state senators met in Melville this morning to ask the state to send more education aid to Long Island.

LIA President Matt Crosson held a press conference Tuesday at his organization's headquarters and was joined by members of the Long Island Education Coalition, the Nassau-Suffolk School Boards Association, the Long Island Federation of Labor AFL-CIO and the state senators. The agenda: To demand Gov. Eliot Spitzer include ample capital slated for Long Island schools in the forthcoming executive budget.

Crosson, according to the LIA's statement, pointed to the fact Long Islanders pay 20 percent more of their gross household income on property taxes than any other locale in the state.

"The unfairness of that one fact alone should cause the State to review and revise the manner in which State education aid is distributed," he said, adding that despite perception that Long Island is predominantly wealthy, "4 percent of Long Island students live in school districts whose wealth is below the statewide average."

Last January, when Spitzer delivered the 2007-2008 budget, the governor cut Long Island's share of new state school aid to eight percent of the statewide total, down from 13 percent. But uproar from the region's Republican state senators eventually led the governor to revert to 13 percent, or $21 million.

But state Sen. Owen Johnson, R-Babylon, on Tuesday vowed to fight any decision by the governor this January to slash local school aid, while his colleague, Sen. Dean Skelos, R-Rockville Centre, lambasted Spitzer for having an "urban agenda."

"Governor Spitzer ... doesn't understand the needs of Long Island schools and their property taxpayers," Skelos said.

Sen. Ceasar Trunzo, R-Brentwood, said the state Board of Regents' November proposal to increase the total state aid to $1.94 billion, nearly 10 percent, limits most local districts to a 2 percent increase in state help. Not to mention, the proposal would end Supplemental Excess Cost Aid, a program that allocates additional sate funding to school districts with growing special education costs.

The point here: If Spitzer finalizes cuts to local aid again this January, the Republican state senators would once more cry foul, as would the LIA.

Last March, before Spitzer's prior budget was approved, the LIA released a report on how cutting school aid would lead to higher residential and commercial property taxes. That issue remains.

"Loss of this aid will cause property taxes to skyrocket even higher than they have in recent years," said Sen. Kemp Hannon, R- Garden City.

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