State education aid

The “conceptual agreement with legislative leaders will allow both houses to begin adopting bills to implement the 2024 budget.

After word that the Riverhead Central School District has received a $14 million hike in state aid, the board of education has decided to propose an operating budget for 2021-2022 that will not increase property taxes and at the same time fund programs that were cut in the contingency budget last year, as well as additional expenditures officials say are needed to improve education districtwide.

Riverhead schools got a big boost in state aid in the final budget deal reached last night between the governor and state...

The State has begun withholding 20% of most local aid payments, forcing reductions in some payments to school districts, according to the New York State Education Department. In response to the reductions, New York State United Teachers has filed a lawsuit seeking to block the aid reductions.

State Sen. Ken LaValle and Assemblyman Fred Thiele say they've drafted legislation that would require an increase in foundation aid for districts, like Riverhead, funded at less than 55% of the foundation aid formula if they meet growth and need criteria.

The governor's budget proposal is still more than $23 million shy of what Riverhead is owed if state foundation aid is fully funded — 'nowhere near' the district's fair share, Superintendent Henriquez says.

Residents turned out in force today for a rally at the middle school, carrying colorful signs and chanting "fair share now!" to demand Riverhead get its fair share of state education aid.

Riverhead and four other school districts in the state get less than 50% of their allotted 'foundation aid,' while the statewide average is about 80%.

State education aid under Gov. Andrew Cuomo's executive budget is "inadequate" for Long Island, according to Assemblyman Fred Thiele, who is calling for the elimination of the gap elimination adjustment, a reduction in education aid instituted several years ago to help plug a state budget deficit, which has been wiped out.

The 2015-2016 budget package also includes compromised, but still highly controversial, changes to the way teachers are evaluated , receive tenure and can be fired.