Opponents of Governor Cuomo’s 2 percent property tax cap were able to stick one major exclusion into the legislation before it passed in 2011: a provision excluding a portion of local government and school employee pensions from the total allowable “levy limit” in years when taxpayer-funded employer contributions rise by more than two percentage points of salaries.
That loophole will push the average “levy limit” in this year’s upcoming school votes to 4.6 percent statewide, more than double the base cap and the inflation rate, according to a report issued by the Empire Center today. And, ironically, the pension exclusion will make it easiest for the poorest districts to avoid a “supermajority” requirement for passing their budgets.
If not for the pension exclusion, the levy school tax limit statewide this year would average 2.7 percent, including allowances for factors such as physical additions to the tax base (new construction, not assessment manipulations) and partial “carry-forwards” of unused cap space from last year.
About the Author
You may also like
DiNapoli bolsters pension fund stability—and cuts tax-funded costs
DiNapoli announced today that he's approved a recommendation by the State Retirement System Actuary to reduce, from 6.8 percent to 5.9 percent, the assumed rate of return (RoR) on investments by the $268 billion Common Retirement Fund, which underwrites the New York State and Local Employee Retirement System (NYSLERS) and Police and Fire Retirement System (PFRS), of which the comptroller is the sole trustee. Read More
The Gov’s pension
There are several (dozens? hundreds?) of unanswered questions as the fallout from Andrew Cuomo's resignation earlier today continues. Among those are questions related to his pension, some of which can be answered, sort of.
Read More
Emergency Billions Pose Opportunity—and Risk—for NYS Schools
New York schools are to post publicly today plans for spending a huge pile of unexpected and unbudgeted cash. Read More
Report Reveals Albany’s Balanced Budget a Gimmick
Extending the budget window reveals large, yawning budget gaps growing from nearly $8 billion in 2026 to nearly $20 billion by the end of the decade. Read More
Voters Approve Nearly All School Budgets Within Tax Cap
School budget votes proposing an average increase in per pupil spending of 4.2 percent were overwhelmingly approved in state-wide voting held yesterday. Read More
On Measuring School Quality, Education Week Misses the Mark
Education Week’s rankings do not measure what counts. New York’s substandard achievement coupled with highest-in-the-nation spending and above-average wealth means that when it comes to school quality, New York fails to pass the mark. Read More
State Forces School Districts To Give Raises—And Layoffs
Months of bad decisions and inaction by New York state officials have put school districts in the awkward position of having to give pay raises to most teachers while laying off others. Read More
Even After Aid Cut, New York Will Spend Most on Education
If New York was a country in 2016—the most recent year for global education spending data—it would have boasted the highest per pupil expenditure in the world, even after subtracting 20 percent of state aid. Read More
Enjoying our work? Sign up for email alerts on our latest news and research.
Together, we can make New York a better place to live and work!