To the Farmingdale BOE recently elected Trustees Dawn Luisi, Anthony Giordano, Gavin Rogers, and Kathy Lively:

We, the undersigned residents of the Farmingdale School District, respectfully submit this petition that you create a new Board Committee with the goal of reducing the 2025/2026 school tax levy by 10%.

• Named “The Affordable Farmingdale Committee”
• The goal is to reduce the $140.4M tax levy (2024/2025) to $126.4M (2025/2026).
• The committee will provide priorities on where to invest, where to optimize, and where to reduce across vendors, capital expenditure and personnel
• We demand relief to the school tax burden imposed on our Daler community
• Fellow Americans throughout the country enjoy high quality education at a fraction of our Daler school tax burden. This cannot be blamed on New York State alone. We deserve affordability for families, singles, and seniors in our great Daler community.

There are 9 Board Committees listed on Farmingdaleschools.org, none of which provide proactive leadership to direct a budget target or budget priorities.

School Administrators Will Only Present a Reduced Tax Levy if You Direct Them

Every year the same patten occurs: the Superintendent presents a budget that increases the school tax levy as much as possible within the tax cap (approximately 1.5%-2.5%) while also increasing the use of state aid funding; combined the administrators leave no dollar on the table.

The Superintendent does not present you with budgets that reduce the school tax levy… because you do not direct him to. He is the 1 employee that you, as a Board, oversee.

If you do not act, April 2025 will be too late for you to react to his budget. His Business Operations team is preparing it now and assuredly are maximizing the budget as high as possible within the tax cap and state aid. For years, your Board has approved massive budget increases mostly funded by state aid.

Since 2018/2019 your Board has increased the total district budget from $165M to over $200M despite enrollment declines and academic declines.

Raising School Taxes & Introducing a New Bond is Out of Touch with our Community

Long Island residents have suffered high inflation, stagnant wages, and major pressures on our small businesses. Personal debt is at all time highs. We are all making personal sacrifices in our personal budgets, many barely making ends meet.

We rely on you to lead the School Tax Levy with the same restraint and sacrifice we responsibly follow in our own homes and small businesses.

The School Tax is, by far, the highest portion of our Property Tax. Our Property Tax is one of our highest personal, household expenses. Those of us that rent feel this sting passed on to us in our monthly rent. For seniors on a fixed income, the School Tax can be their single highest annual expense. We cannot bear even another $1 increase. The only moral direction of the School Tax is downward.

Our Increased Dependence on New York State Aid

New York State knows it cannot balance its budget and maintain the level of state school aid that Farmingdale now depends on, due to your Board’s repeated budgeting behavior. Thus, we now face “regionalization” for New York State to force efficiencies across school districts.

The future of New York education is unclear. But one thing is certain- we will reduce our risk if we reduce our school tax levy and our overall school budget immediately.

A 10% School Tax Levy Reduction is Within Reach

You will not have to do this alone. A community of experts are available to assist your committee: residents, volunteer think tanks; the sky is the limit if you only take the first step and demonstrate your resolve to a tax reduction. The strength in the number of residents signing this petition shows our backing and support of your courage to take this critical step.

The Committee’s charter will not be “whether” to reduce school tax by 10%. The charter will be “how” to reduce school tax by 10% so the Superintendent has direction from his Board when preparing the 2025/2026 budget.

We trust that you will hear the voice of the Daler community and motion a public vote no later than December 31, 2024 to create the “Affordable Farmingdale” Committee. We understand that you cannot control the behavior of your fellow Trustees, but we greatly appreciate your courage in a public forum to move us in the right direction.