NEWS12 FOCUS Series on School Districts

[concerned]

I caught a very interesting segment on NEWS12 this morning in their "FOCUS" series about the salaries of admin. in school districts and some points Tom Suozzi is making to consolidate business managers by region rather than by school district to shave some money off our tax bills. This series will air all week....

[concerned]

Salaries of all school district admin. is available on their web site.

[Go Plainedge!]

I like this idea and think it can carry over to many other positions within districts.

Somewhere in the early beginings of this message board, I think this topic was discussed (??)...possibly between Techie and JDavola??

[techie]

And the prize goes to,... Go Plainedge!

Really though, if anyone has the chance to tape the series I can make duplicates for anyone else. I just am one of those people without cable!

The idea is one of a few that Mr. Suozzi has to try to save some money and cut duplicate jobs and services.
I wonder what kind of response he will get from our Administration?

To go along with incorporating districts in some matters, would it be far out of line to suggest buying electric or oil as a county wide purchase and divide up the costs? I don't know if it would be feasable, but its just another idea to throw out there.

[justfacts]

For a different perspective on school districts as 50+ separate entities vs "combining" them into one - check out how they do it in the 55 libraries in Nassau County.

They formed a Nassau Library System (NLS) - decades ago. This entitled then to more State aid as an inducement to combine certain services and achieve a more cost-effective way to pay for centralized services rather than have these services duplicated in each library. NLS has an operating budget composed of about $4 million in State money plus small contributions from each library for the services rendered. Multiplied by 54, these small contributions add up!

That's why we have the Automated Library Information Services (ALIS) today which allows all libraries to share books between themselves electronically - with book pick ups and drop offs at your local library. Book holding and checkout systems over a central network has replaced labor intensive individual card catalogs, trucks and drivers are shared to cover the entire county and bring the books to local patrons every day. This network can be accessed by you from your home - you don't even have to go to the library to put a book on hold. (Providing you have a library card!)

Group data base purchases allow discounts that no single library could afford. The same goes for all other library materials. Construction and maintenance grants, which we would not be otherwise entitled to, provide supplemental money from the State for the upkeep of libraries within the system. Combined monies pay for county wide library Internet service to even the smallest library.

Enough of the cost advantages! Here's how they made it work so that each library could maintain its individuality - yet be part of a larger organization.

They divided the county up into nine Areas of about 6 libraries each. Each Area elects one of its own people to the System Board. There are nine Trustees on the NLS Board that look out for library interests across the whole of Nassau, yet also guard the interests of each of the six libraries in their own special Area.

This system works (as a similar system also works in Suffolk County) - and has worked well for several decades - bringing superior library service to Long Island. If you doubt that it is superior - just check with any upstate or out-of-state library system, They'll tell you that they envy the Long Island libraries.

Now - why couldn't we have an Area representative on a School District System (SDS) Board for Long Island? The cost of many items could be better controlled, and shared. Duplications within many (not all) "mandated services" could be cut by a factor of six. Certain other individual expenses could drop six-fold - as they have within the NLS operations. In the future, we might even consider sharing the four property classes across the six districts to further equalize property taxes between School Districts.

Just maybe it might also give the rational to Albany to drop some new money into the SDS approach which will go to "promote cost effectiveness through combined activities". (That's a better way to get more State funds rather than Long Island trying to take existing money away from Westchester, or other upstate communities, - we know how hard they are already fighting that approach)

[yruohk]

techie said:

would it be far out of line to suggest buying electric or oil as a county wide purchase and divide up the costs? I don't know if it would be feasable, but its just another idea to throw out there.

I received a newsletter from my online subscription for LIPA news which had an interesting bit about solar energy. I submitted a request for more info but haven't heard back yet. Here is the bit from the newsletter:

Solar Pioneer Program - There's Still Time to Sign Up
Starting November 19, 2005, LIPA will be offering $3.75/watt toward the cost of a photovoltaic system, making this an excellent time to dramatically reduce your energy bills. Currently, over 569 customers have installed a photovoltaic system. In addition, schools,
not-for-profit customers and government customers are eligible for an extra rebate of $1/watt above the current rebate level, resulting in a rebate of $4.75/watt beginning on November 19th. With Governor Pataki's recent legislation eliminating New York State sales tax on solar products, LIPA's rebate and the New York State Solar Tax Credit, homeowners can significantly reduce the cost of purchasing a photovoltaic system. Look for more information on how you can maximize your benefits under the 2005 Energy Bill in the next issue.

To learn more about LIPA's Solar Pioneer Program or to check for upcoming free solar seminars, please visit www.lipower.org/cei/solar.html, or call LIPA's Energy Infoline at 1-800-692-2626.

When I hear, I will post. Anyone can make inquiry especially if considering installing solar energy systems.

[techie]

YRUOK,

Although the idea of "Green Power"(renewable energy) is a viable one for our futures, at this time the rate of return for a financially over burdened district is not good.

As a former member in the EPAs GREENLIGHTS Program and being involved in energy conservation and Solar Energy projects in the past I can speak with some validity.
As of this time, while the cost of Solar Cells/Panels has declined and efficiency has improved, they are still cost prohibitive for a District like ours.

What can and could be focused on at this time are the ways that we can reduce our consumption. Re-lamping programs have existed in the past and some continue by the EPA and State. Changing lighting ballasts, motion sensors, even something as simple as cleaning or changing reflectors for lighting can help to reduce the amount of energy used in daily operations while saving costs in energy bills. With more efficient lamps being used the need for the amount of lamps can be greatly reduced.
a Lighting Efficiency Audit can be done to show what current costs are per fixture and ways that this could be improved. To give you an idea, picture an office building. how many EXIT signs are burning 24/7/365 days per year? Now, besides the energy costs to light them, the standard bulbs are pron to burn out and replacing. The cost of the bulb is not the main issue, but rather the cost for the time for the janitor to get a ladder,bulb,screwdriver and replace it. Replacing the bulb with L.E.D. bulbs give of a brighter light and they last,(as far as has been projected) for about 75 years. This is also why the D.O.T. has replaced all your traffic lights with LEDs. Very reduced maintenance costs.

If you would like to find out more information on Solar Energy, LIPA/Solar Pioneers and SUNY FARMINGDALE give talks at Roosevelt Hall on campus a few times a year. SUNY also offers a program in Solar Energy. They have a very interesting Solar Aray setup on campus. Also, next to BJs in Mellville is a company called FALA Marketing. This company has had installed on their buildings the largest Solar Project in the East so far. The company that did most of the work was a Long Island Co. called SUNSHINE PLUS. The State helped to fund a large part of this.